Closest to Heaven
by Sandylee007
Summary: When Naruto starts working in a institution for ‘broken’ named Tengoku, even he soon thinks he's out of his mind - especially when he meets a seemingly mute patient named Sasuke, who threatens to drive him straight into insanity. AU YAOI NaruSasu
1. Prologue – The Arrival

A/N: (grins sheepishly) Yup, back – and with another story. After finishing 'BS' I just couldn't resist starting out with this one, so here I am. (smirks)

As some of you may know, this is the 'next winner' of my poll. And yes, before I forget… Thank you so much to all those who've voted thus far – my goodness, there's already been about 225 of you! (faints from shock, then HUGS) You guys are amazing – thank you so much!

FULL SUMMARY: When Naruto announced he wanted to work in a institution for 'broken' named Tengoku, everyone thought he was going crazy, especially with the blonde's pitch-black past – and in a while, so does Naruto. Especially when he meets a seemingly mute patient named Sasuke, who threatens to drive him straight into insanity. AU NaruSasu

WARNINGS: YAOI, AU, graphic themes, language, sadness, oddness… Heh, the usual when it comes to my stories. (sweatdrops)

DISCLAIMER: The day I own something, cows will most likely be flying, so… (sobs)

Awkay, as nervewrecking as this always is… (gulps) Let's go – I REALLY hope you'll enjoy this first startout!

* * *

**Closest to Heaven**

* * *

CHAPTER 1: Prologue – The Arrival

* * *

Sasuke kept his eyes closed while he lay on his bed, fighting the urge to wince at how tight the restraints around his wrists and ankles were. The drug _they_ had given him was still fresh and hot in his veins, so the familiar voices floated to his ears as though through a fog.

"He's barely conscious! What the hell is going on?"

"I'm afraid he had another episode. He would've harmed himself even more seriously than he already did if we hadn't medicated him."

"I see." Her voice was quiet, defeated. Apparently she was giving up, too – for some reason the thought felt far worse than he'd expected. He shivered when she brushed his cheek. "Sasuke, can you hear me?"

He cringed.

Couldn't they understand that he was tired, damn it – that he needed to sleep, that his head was about to explode? He wanted them – especially her – to go and leave him alone.

That was what everyone else had done.

She pulled her hand away. "Sasuke… We're all here for you, okay? We want to help you, and we're not about to give up anytime soon. So don't you dare do so, either." With that he heard how she walked away.

-

Tsunade groaned loudly and fought the urge to kick a nearby trashcan as she left the room and rubbed her face with one hand.

In some other state of mind she might've found the situation amusing. She – who'd sworn that she'd let no patient get under her skin – was getting all worked up like this, barely managed to hold back tears and a scream. But now, she hardly found her feelings hilarious.

She groaned loudly, and leaned heavily against the wall.

_That brat is going to be the death of me._

She didn't know how long it took before she finally managed to steel herself once more and opened her eyes.

That new summer-worker was supposed to arrive soon, right? She had work to do.

Unable to restrain herself, she turned once more towards the thick window of acrylic glass which separated her from her patient. He was resting with his back towards her, with sweat having glued his usually spiked black hair to his head and neck. Even with the oversized clothes he was wearing, it was easy to see that he was nothing but skin and bones.

Ten doctors had declared Sasuke Uchiha a hopeless case. Even more people had given up trying to reach him. She would've wanted nothing more than to prove them wrong, to show that the boy still had a chance for a future. Unfortunately that idealistic dream seemed quite far off.

Sighing deeply, she finally turned away from him and started to walk away.

She needed some strong coffee to have the energy to face a new employee.

* * *

For a sixteen-years-old Naruto Uzumaki, the start of every single day was almost exactly the same – it didn't make much of a difference whether it was a schoolday or not.

He opened his eyes, always finding the same heart-shaped stain on the otherwise nearly white roof. After that he turned to side, and took a glance towards the bright-green clock sitting on his small bedside table. Then getting up, brushing teeth, going to shower.

But this day of early summer was very different – and not only because he discovered that his alarm-clock had broken down and he'd slept in.

His eyes widened, and far faster than he'd ever moved he'd jumped out of the bed and started a mad dash downstairs. "Oh crap… Crap, crap, crap…!"

He was going to be late. What a great beginning for a day when he'd start in his new job…

His foster father Iruka entered the house just when he made it to their kitchen. He tried to seem accusative and failed miserably while searching heatedly for something to eat. His mouth was full of bread as he spoke. "Why didn't you wake me up?" Gulping down the bread, he hurriedly drank some juice to wash it down. He then frowned, coming to think of something. "And where were you, anyway?"

A look he didn't manage to read flashed by Iruka's face. The man focused on cleaning up the mess he'd made while searching for food, and wouldn't look at him. "I just… had to take care of something."

His frown from before deepened, and something cold appeared to his stomach. "Are you okay?"

Hard as he tried, he couldn't tell if the man's smile was faked or not. "Of course I am." The brunet seemed to focus on other matters. "Now go and stop worrying. I'm sure the others are already waiting for you."

He nodded, not really knowing what to say.

Just as he was about to go Iruka's voice made him halt. "Oh, and Naruto?" This time the brunet's smile was a genuine one. "Good luck. And don't worry – I'm sure you're perfect for the job."

A huge grin appeared to his face, and it was hard to resist the temptation to go and hug the man. "Thanks", was all he managed to get out. Then, with a wave of hand, he started to dash towards the room's door. "See you at four, right?"

Had he turned around, he might've been alarmed by the look that lingered on Iruka's face. "Yeah. See you."

* * *

By the time Naruto made it to a café, he was almost twenty minutes late. That's why he wasn't all that surprised to find Neji, Kiba, Shikamaru, Sai and Ino already waiting for him.

With thoughts of Iruka's odd behaviour and his new job, it was surprisingly hard to grin freely while he slumped down to sit beside Neji. "'Sorry I'm late – this morning's been pretty crappy."

He felt a tiny shiver when Neji kissed his lips. "It's okay." The boy wrapped a pair of surprisingly possessive arms around him and pulled him close. "I… would've ordered you tea, but I couldn't remember which brand you like."

He smiled somewhat wryly, not sure if he felt amused or disappointed. "We've been together for almost a year, and you still don't remember?"

Neji responded with grunting something and kissing him again.

"Hey, lovebirds." For some reason he wasn't as disappointed by Kiba's interruption as he should've been. "There are also others present, remember?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry." He then withdrew from Neji slightly when the boy's herbal-tea arrived, the drink's aroma making his stomach turn as memories struck. It was almost impossible to focus. "So… Why did you invite me here, anyway? You've been acting… oddly."

Shikamaru shrugged. "We wanted you to come for a chat."

Ino swatted the boy's head. "Stop lying to him!" The girl then looked at him. "We're your friends and we care about you, okay? And we're worried."

He blinked thrice, his chest shrinking as he began to realize where this was all going. "Why would you be worried? I'm fine."  
Kiba rolled his eyes a little. "Yeah, yeah, you are now. But… What's gonna happen when you start working _there_?"

"You've been through a lot", Sai continued. "Are you sure that all isn't too much?"

He smiled a little at his friends' genuine concern. "Iruka already gave me that speech about eight times, okay? Everything's just fine." He then peered towards Neji. "I can't believe they managed to talk someone as sensible as you into this."

Neji shrugged, something he'd never seen before flashing by the boy's eyes. "I'm also worried." The boy brushed his stomach, where they both knew a large scar to locate. "Especially with _those_, and all your nightmares."

He rolled his eyes and gave Neji's cheek a peck, almost losing control over the smile that appeared. "Yeah, yeah, you're being a good boyfriend." He then grew far more solemn and looked downwards, not wanting anyone to see the look in his eyes. "It's just… It's because of those nightmares I have to do this. Maybe if I do this… Then maybe those dreams will go away." He grit his teeth. "It's been so long. I've gotta let go – that's why I'm doing this, to prove that I'm strong enough." He forced himself to grin when seeing the expressions darted his way. "So you can stop looking at me like that. I'll be fine."

Kiba shrugged. "Well, in that case…" The boy lifted his mug, and the others soon followed. "To new jobs."

He couldn't help laughing out loud when Kiba and Shikamaru started bickering after they'd spilled drinks on each other, and Ino soon joined the havoc. To think that he'd actually managed to get friends like these…

"Naruto." Sai's voice barely managed to catch his attention. "What time is your shift supposed to start?"

He frowned. "At twelve. Why?" Following Sai's nod, he glanced towards the clock to find that he only had five minutes left. He winced and cussed loudly.

This really wasn't his day.

After giving Neji a kiss and saying bye to the others he dashed off, hoping that the punishment he'd receive for being late wouldn't be anything too traumatizing.

* * *

Naruto didn't even dare to look at his watch by the time he finally entered his new working place, using the keys he'd gotten from a receptionist only days ago. But even with his horrible sense of time, he knew he was badly late.

But suddenly, instead of heading towards the locker room to change his clothes – which would've been the one reasonable thing to do – he found his legs leading him entirely elsewhere. It felt like he'd been following a call of some sort, and he was both curious and scared to find out where he was going.

He walked for what felt like ages, crossing more hallways than he could count. Then, so suddenly that it surprised him, he stopped before a certain window, almost holding his breath with something close to anticipation. He blinked twice when seeing inside a boy with black, rather messy hair. The raven seemed to be sleeping, or perhaps feigning slumber.

As though enchanted somehow, he took a step closer.

And then, before he could do a thing to escape, the boy sensed his presence. He couldn't even blink before the raven shifted so that their eyes met. For a couple of moments his heart stopped, as though he'd collided with something.

One half of the other boy's face had been burned badly once upon a time, the other side was sickly pale. But he didn't notice any of that. All he could see were those onyx eyes – hazy, most likely from drugs, but nonetheless filled with untamed fire he could've sworn he'd seen before.

He became so captivated that he didn't notice the girl until she was stood beside him. "He's Sasuke Uchiha. I think we've all tried, but he won't talk to any of us – he hasn't said a word since first coming here, and he rarely leaves his room. He's probably the saddest story around here." Turning his head, he found a girl with pink hair and warm green eyes. On her she had clothes that could've been as well a uniform as her regular clothes. She smiled at him. "I'm Sakura."

He couldn't help grinning. "I'm Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki." Unable to look away too long, he turned his gaze back to Sasuke, who'd already turned his back on him. He focused on watching how the raven breathed – one, two, three… It was extremely hard to remember to speak. "How long have you been here?"

To his surprise, Sakura shrugged. "A year, maybe two. It's hard to keep track on time in here."

His mouth was already opened for a question when a new voice interrupted him. "Sakura, I've been looking for you." Turning around, he saw a woman with long, blond hair walking towards them. "You've got an appointment with Shizune, remember?"

Sakura grinned sheepishly. "Sorry." She then waved a hand at him before starting to walk away. "See you later."

His eyes wide with stun, he couldn't help staring for a while as the girl went. "She's… a patient?"

The woman nodded, then focused on him. "You must be Naruto Uzumaki."

He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah. I'm… sorry I'm late."

She waved her hand. "Just don't make a habit out of it, understood?" Her expression stated that she was definitely serious. Her eyes then turned slightly warmer. "I'm Tsunade, the senior physician of this merry place. Welcome to Tengoku."

* * *

TBC, or does it?

* * *

A/N: So… (gulps) What do you guys think – does that sound like the beginning of a decent story, or was that something that should be deleted immediately?

**PLEASE**, do leave a review to let me know your thoughts – it'd mean the world to me, especially with how insecure I am about letting stories out on the loose! (gives a irresistible puppy-dog look)

Until next time, I hope – with whichever story that may be!

Thank you so much for reading this!

Take care!


	2. The First Encounters

A/N: First off, I'm so sorry about the long wait! (winces) I was struggling with pulling together this chapter, but now it's finally here. Yay?

BUT, before getting to the story… My GOSH – thank you so much for all those UNBELIEVABLE reviews! So many of you saw potential in the first chappy. (sniffs with movement, and glomps) You guys are amazing – thank you!

Awkay, because I've already made you wait too long, let's get going! (gulps) I REALLY hope this turns out worth all the wait.

* * *

CHAPTER 2: The First Encounters

* * *

Naruto's first impression on Tengoku was that it was nothing like he'd expected.

It was a huge, rather old building – which had most likely served as a hospital for as long as it'd stood – that held a hospital's typical stench in its air. But it was far too… homely to look like an institution. Several paintings, flowers, couches and other everyday things softened the building's atmosphere. A look towards the barred windows, however, quickly dropped him from all illusions.

"Unfortunately we had to bar the windows for security reasons", Tsunade explained without turning towards him, as though having read his mind. "We also have a strict policy against the inhabitants handling scissors or any other sharp objects. Medication is carefully monitored."

He nodded slowly. "'K."

"I'm sure you're already aware of our confidentiality policy. If anything ever bothers you, you're more than welcomed to talk to any of us staff-members, but you're not allowed to take any information on our inhabitants outside this building." Obviously sensing his nervousness, Tsunade gave him a slightly soft look before going on. "We're working hard to gain the trust of these teenagers, so we need to be worth it. I'm sure you understand."

He nodded again, feeling embarrassingly lot like a puppy that was eager to please. Damn it, if only his muscles hadn't been so stiff…! "Yeah, I do."

There was a pause when they turned two corners. "The group I've decided to let you work with now consists of six teenagers. It's very small, and very intensive, so it's highly important that you tell me if it gets overwhelming. I'm keeping your job-description as light as possible. You have no education and as I understood this is your first time working in a place like this; I don't want this all to become too much for you. During these first days I'm only expecting you to learn, attend, observe and get to know these patients." They stood behind a rather large door when Tsunade turned towards him all of a sudden. There was a look he couldn't read in her eyes. "Naruto, you should know that we don't usually take any summerworkers here – partially because short-term staff puts a place like this into a chaos, and partially because this is a very demanding place to work in. But I wanted to make an exception with you." She smiled faintly, barely noticeably. "I'm sure you'll do just fine, and we're all here to help you. So don't worry."

Finally managing to relax, he couldn't resist smiling as well. It was easy to melt under such trust. "Thanks." Just then he noticed a couple of candles, along with a single flower, placed behind a nearby smaller door. Chills ran down his spine. "What… are those for?"

Something close to sadness appeared to Tsunade's eyes. "A patient named Kimimaro… left us a couple of days ago." She paused for a long moment. "Apparently someone gave him a knife – we still don't know who."

Cold shivers, along with immense sadness, washed over him as he stared at the signs of mourning. "Why?" was all he managed.

It took quite a while before Tsunade managed to speak. "Because sometimes… Sometimes, no amount of treatment and caring is enough – the scars and damages go too deep. In time you need to learn how to keep your distance for the sake of your sanity. It's the hardest and most bitter lesson you need to accept in this job."

He swallowed thickly, unsure as to what to say. "It's not fair."

"I know." Tsunade shrugged. "But if it offers you any consolation… When it stops feeling unfair, you're not fit for this job anymore." The woman then glanced towards her watch and cussed under her breath. "I just remembered that there's something I have to take care of." She gave him a meaningful glance. "I'll be back in a minute. Wait here, so I can take you to see the inhabitants, alright? Don't go wandering around."

He nodded, still a little bit dazed.

About ten seconds after Tsunade had left he suddenly heard something that caught all his attention and made him blink twice.

Someone… was playing a piano.

Where the heck had he heard that melody before?

He knew it would've been the wisest idea to obey Tsunade, but he couldn't control himself – it was as though his legs hadn't been his anymore. And so he started to walk towards the sound, his head spinning as fast as his heart thumped.

He soon found himself from the doorway of what looked like a common space – and couldn't help blinking at what he found.

Before a clearly old piano sat Sasuke with his back towards him, playing as though nothing else but the music existed at the moment. The raven's fingers danced on the instrument, not needing a single moment to know what where they were supposed to go. He'd never seen anyone look so peaceful and content – it was like the boy hadn't been the same who'd looked at him from that tiny room when he'd first arrived.

He knew he was probably making a huge mistake, but couldn't hold himself back under the flame-like temptation. He took a cautious step forward and inhaled a deep breath before speaking. "That was beautiful." Then, deciding that something else needed to be added, he went on. "Who taught you to play?" In all honesty he wasn't expecting the raven to respond, but couldn't resist the tingle of hope anyway.

So fast that it startled him Sasuke turned towards him, eyes filled with nearly animalistic gleam at first. Then, very slowly, the boy's muscles relaxed and the raven turned away again. The boy's fingers ghosted above the piano's keys, as though the instrument had lost its voice just like the teen.

Not waiting for or expecting an invitation, he walked closer and slid slowly to the seat next to Sasuke, hoping from the bottom of his heart that the wasn't making a disastrous mistake. Sasuke kept observing him carefully, tensing up once more, but the boy didn't make a move against him. Both were equally silent while they tried to get used to each other's presence.

After a couple of minutes he just couldn't take the silence any longer. "I… guess you don't like talking too much, but… it'd be cool to hear your voice, okay? Because… it feels kind of stupid talking to myself."

Sasuke glanced towards him with annoyance and amusement, then – out of the blue, most likely surprising them both – emitted something that sounded like a scoff before focusing on the piano once more. The boy's lips seemed to move for a fleeting moment, but no voice came.

His heart raced as he all but stared at the boy.

Sasuke… had just come close to saying something, hadn't he? Or was he just imagining things? Did this mean that there was still hope?

Then Sasuke started to play again, choosing that same melody which sounded torturously familiar. Though hard as he tried, the strings of memories just wouldn't connect.

Where had he hard that song before?!

He just opened his mouth to ask when Tsunade's voice made him jump high. "I should've known you're here." There was irritation on her face, but also something else he couldn't name. "There's a session starting soon, and I'd like to see you there." She cast a meaningful glance towards Sasuke, who wouldn't look her way. "_Both_ of you." With that she turned around and started to walk away. "Naruto, there's a pile of files waiting for you in my office. Take a look at them and come to the lounge we passed by."

After she'd left, he took a rather deep breath. "Well, I guess…" It was then he discovered that Sasuke had already disappeared – as though the Uchiha had been nothing but his imagination. He emitted a groan of annoyance. So much for fast progress… "Damn it."

* * *

Always having been a curious nature, Naruto was excited to get on the files Tsunade had left for him. Apparently they included information on the teenagers who'd attend to the meeting soon to start. Taking a deep breath, he opened the first file, wondering what he'd come across.

_Subaku, Gaara_

_Violence, asocial behavior, several arrests, even more doctors having given up, numerous times of being locked up to institutions…_

The file was thick with sombre reports from numerous foster homes, the police and doctors.

Feeling somewhat choked up, he moved on to the next file, fearing of what it'd reveal.

_Raijen, Juugo_

_Obvious schizophrenia, aggressive behavior, extremely withdrawn personality, numerous assaults, history of abuse…_

As he went through the papers, several pictures of a tall, skinny and angry boy's beaten up face fell to the table before him.

He shivered a little while putting the file away. Jumping to the next one didn't feel all that appealing.

_Deijouji, Haku_

_Severe depression, self mutilation, several suicide attempts…_

A trauma of some sort had pulled the kind, gentle and highly intelligent teen to dark waters.

He didn't know what to think anymore. These teens… They were so sick. Was he really the right person to help them, when…?

He then shook his head, his eyes flashing. He'd never been a quitter. Why should he start now, when he was trying to reach out for his dream?

He blinked twice when spotting a familiar name on top of the next file.

_So she really is a patient, huh?_

_Haruno, Sakura_

_Bipolar disorder, history with eating disorders, severe emotional difficulties…_

It appeared she'd gone through quite a bit in the past – her road having taken her from losing her parents five minutes after her birthday party to a foster home where her 'father' had taken advantage of her. But at the moment medication and therapy appeared to be working. Her papers told that she actually had hope.

And then Naruto spotted the file he'd been secretly waiting for.

_Uchiha, Sasuke_

His hands were slightly sweaty as he grabbed the papers and started to go through them – only to notice that there was barely any information on the Uchiha's past. No record of parents or siblings, of any family whatsoever. Not even any indication to who'd identified the child in the first place when he'd been found crying and bloodied, half of his face brutally burned, from the side of a highway. Back then Sasuke had been ten. Since then there was a lot of information from doctors and officials.

Sasuke had been shipped from a jail and closed ward to another – he'd been tested, poked, threatened and pushed into the corner for countless of times. It was as though the boy was a dangerous wild animal no one knew how to handle – at least ten doctors had signed in a 'lost cause' –label to the teen. For the past seven months Sasuke had been in this place. So far the results didn't seem all that encouraging despite obvious attempts.

_Aphasia, depression, eating disorders, violent behavior, unstable personality, suicidal behavior…_

Sasuke hadn't spoken a word to anyone since being admitted – no one knew if the boy had _ever_ spoken. He also wouldn't let anyone – including doctors and other inhabitants – touch him, so it was impossible to tell what all had been done to him. To all attempts of approaching the teen responded with animalistic violence, otherwise he stayed on his own, sealed into a world no one had access to. The Uchiha had isolated himself from the world even more affectively than he'd been isolated for most of his life.

Naruto felt absolutely empty and breathless as he stared at the papers, slowly absorbed the heartbreaking information.

How could they ever fix this?

How would _he_ ever manage to help Sasuke, when the boy obviously didn't want _anyone_ anywhere near him?

Then, very slowly, his eyes lit up with determination.

He didn't care if everyone else had given up, because he _never_ would. Even with the risk of losing his sanity he'd help Sasuke, because he needed to believe that there was still hope.

That boy with fire in his eyes he'd just seen was no lost cause.

Just then he noticed that there was one more file left. His eyes widened when he saw a much too familiar surname on cardboard.

_Hyuuga, Hinata_

Hyuuga. Just like Neji.

Neji, who'd claimed that he was the soul member of his generation in the whole family. No siblings, no cousins.

He frowned and shivered, feeling cold all over.

Since when had he and Neji been keeping secrets – why hide something like this? Hadn't he made it clear that he'd accept the Hyuuga, come what may? Where had Hinata been all her life when she'd never been seen anywhere around Konoha?

He prepared himself for opening up the file, but never had the time. Because just then the door opened, and Tsunade peered in. "I know you'd need more time to get to know them, but it's time to get started. They're getting restless."

He nodded stiffly and got up, for once in his life not finding a single word. His head was an inch from hurting under the weight of all the thoughts bouncing around.

They'd made it to a huge door until Tsunade turned towards him and spoke. "I'll have to warn you. This place is very tender to all sorts of changes, so you may not get a very warm welcome. But don't let it get you down – they're real sweethearts once you get to know them."

He managed to pull on a tiny grin. "Nah, don't worry. I'm ready."

Tsunade smiled faintly. "Well, you sure have gutts." She then pushed the door open. "Welcome to the jungle."

As he stepped into the room, he immediately discovered that Tsunade hadn't been exaggerating. While painting four other teens watched with a mixture of feelings as three members of staff worked hard to control whom he assumed to be Juugo and Gaara. The boys had ended up to a huge argument over blue paint. Now there was paint everywhere, and both boys were bruised.

"I hate art-therapy sometimes", he just heard Tsunade mutter under her breath before she raised her voice. "Everyone, listen up! This is Naruto – he'll be working with us as from today. Be nice to him so he can get used to us, alright?"

Sakura was the first one to actually look towards him. She grinned brightly when seeing and recognizing him. "Hey! So you were bold enough to actually appear."

He couldn't help grinning as well.

Gaara also gave an immediate response to his presence. The boy – who turned out to be a redhead underneath a thick layer of paint – looked towards him with evaluating eyes, then scoffed loudly and muttered something obviously insulting under his breath before looking away again.

Tsunade shot a glare towards the boy. "Gaara, mind your manners."

The redhead acted as though he hadn't heard.

He was slightly surprised when facing Haku. The boy – who was giving him a smile that obviously hid away a lot – could've easily fooled him that he was a girl. "Welcome to Tengoku."

He grinned, relieved by the warm welcome. "Thanks."

It took a while before he noticed Hinata, and when he did he was chilled by how much like Neji's her eyes were. Fighting to overcome surprise, he managed to grin a bit when she looked towards him from behind her painting. She blushed to an incredible extend and swayed slightly while looking away in a flash.

Juugo, on the other hand, was much easier to recognize in his tall glory. The boy greeted him with a nod and a "Hi" that might've as well been his imagination. He couldn't help blinking twice. Was that calm person really the same who'd just fought Gaara and been introduced in papers?

As from then things went on what he assumed normally, although especially Gaara and Juugo kept sending suspicious, almost angry glances his way and Hinata couldn't even look at him without blushing. Quite slowly and noisily several more or less graphic paintings were born under his and the other employees' observation. The dark themes – of death, blood and sadness – chilled him for a moment, but quite soon the first shock faded and he was able to read the stories behind them. He even found himself thinking some of the artworks were beautiful.

It was almost chilling how comfortable he felt around these badly troubled teens.

He didn't know how long the hassle had gone on until something unexpected happened. "Well afternoon, Sasuke." With the mention of Sasuke's name, a very young nurse immediately gained his full attention – as well as the attention of pretty much everyone else in the room. His heart leapt a bit when he glanced towards the room's door, and found the Uchiha there, observing them with cautious eyes that were filled with warning.

Tsunade shot a half-glare at the nurse, then offered a paintbrush to the boy. "Do you want to paint?"

For a couple of moments Sasuke stared first at the offering, then looked at him directly to eyes. He was sure his heart skipped a beat and he forgot to breathe while they examined each other, as though trying to find something. Then the boy noticed everyone watching and retreated back into his shell once more. With a small, unidentifiable sound and a strange look the boy left.

Gaara gruffed, Hinata and Juugo seemed slightly disappointed and Haku looked towards the door for a couple of moments with somewhat sad eyes. Sakura, on the other hand, groaned. "Damn it, it was so close."

Tsunade cast a warning look towards the girl. "Watch your tongue."

Naruto couldn't have agreed with the pinkette more. He looked downwards, the bitter taste of disappointment filling his mouth.

Why didn't Sasuke want to be with them – with…?

"Naruto." To his surprise Tsunade was smiling. "This was the first time Sasuke actually showed up at all. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it was huge progress."

The grin came without being invited. "Are you serious?"

Tsunade nodded, then glanced towards the room's door before looking back at him. "I've gotta go now, okay? Show up at seven tomorrow – we'll carry on from there."

At first he blinked – so he wasn't fired?! – then the grin from before widened tenfold. "I won't be late, believe it."

With a tiny smile Tsunade left the room, on her way telling the three members of staff to escort the inhabitants to a lunch-room.

After a couple of moments Naruto's gaze strayed to the door through which Sasuke had disappeared. For once there was a warm feeling inside him.

So, apparently things might be turning towards the right direction, after all.

Sakura's voice appeared so suddenly that he jumped and emitted a very embarrassing yelp. "You know…" She gave him a look of deep amusement. "If you really care about him that much, then what the heck are you doing gawking here?"

He focused on gathering together the equiptment they'd been using, feeling embarrassed although he didn't know why. "I… don't care all that much, not really."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever. But get going already, will you? Because it's painful to watch you twitching like that."

He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess…" He then waved briefly before starting to walk away. "See you tomorrow!"

-

Watching Naruto go, Sakura scoffed a little and shook her head. "And he's supposed to be here as a member of staff…"

* * *

Tsunade smiled faintly when entering a tiny room, and seeing a familiar person sitting behind a table. "Hey. I guess you came to talk about Naruto."

Iruka nodded, looking towards her with apparent concern. "How's his first day been?"

She sat down, deep in thought. "It… hasn't been easy – he still takes everything so very personally, takes everything to his heart. And his past isn't helping matters. But…" It was hard not to smile again. "I think he'll do just fine – he'll help those teens just as much as they'll help him. I think you made the right decision when letting me take him in."

Iruka's shoulders relaxed in an instant, and brown eyes became filled with such relief she'd never seen before. "That's good."

When the man broke into a fit of wrenching coughs she frowned, something squirming uncomfortably in her stomach. "How was the first one?"

Iruka seemed to come close to wincing. "Just as bad as expected."

She nodded, feeling a twinge inside when watching how the brunet fought to gather himself. "Just… call me, if you need help with looking after Naruto or anything else, okay?"

Iruka nodded, sending a look of gratitude her way. "Thanks." With that the man pushed himself up with appearent difficulty. "I've gotta go to school – the students have most likely already caused a havoc."

She nodded this time, although he couldn't see it, and watched with sad eyes as he approached the room's door. "Take care of yourself."

Iruka responded with a small wave, not turning towards her. And so the man had left.

Silence had never felt as heavy as it did when wrapping around her then.

* * *

It didn't take Naruto as long as he'd thought to find Sasuke. The Uchiha was in his tiny, rather dark room, leaning against the wall with somewhat glazed eyes, legs brought against his chest and arms wrapped around them. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he could've sworn he saw the boy shiver. What was going through the raven's head, was impossible to tell.

Licking his lips, not sure how to proceed, he took one extremely cautious step forth. He felt like retreating when Sasuke tensed up completely and gave him a look that carried wild threat – which was most likely covering up panic. He'd have to be careful, now.

He tried to grin, and managed to make it surprisingly believable. "Hey, it's okay – I'm not gonna hurt you or anything. I just…" He shrugged. "I just wanted to come and see how you're doing. I mean… You didn't join the others."  
He snorted and felt like breaking into a thin smile when Sasuke rolled his eyes and looked away with seemingly disinterested eyes. "I'm not that boring, am I?" Then, realizing that ice had been broken, he dared to go and sit next to the Uchiha. "You don't mind if I sit with you for a bit, do you?"

Quite unsurprisingly Sasuke barely reacted, only gave a barely detectable sideways glance his way, as though to make sure his intentions weren't anything sinister.

It wasn't until then he remembered something. He grinned sheepishly while scratching his hair. "I… guess I never remembered to introduce myself, did I?" He would've offered his hand, had he not known it pointless. "I'm Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki. I started working here today." Seeing a strange flash in Sasuke's eyes and spotting new tension, he frowned. "What's wrong?"

Then, to both their surprise, Sasuke melted into a tiny, wry smirk. The boy took a piece of paper from his pocket and wrote something to it, then handed the paper to him. His blood froze with surprise when he read to words.

'_You're still loud and annoying._'

_Still…?_

It wasn't possible that he'd met Sasuke before – he should've been able to remember something like that. Right?

He looked at Sasuke with demanding eyes. "What does this mean?" he asked in a tense tone.

Sasuke looked directly to his eyes – and he'd never found as much disappointment as he did then. It felt like something had been broken, almost. Then, as though nothing had happened, the Uchiha looked away quickly and returned to his former position, sinking completely into himself and hiding the scarred side of his face from him.

The connection was broken.

Feeling desperate Naruto opened his mouth, but never got the chance to say anyhing. For then there was a faint knock on the door, and a rather young woman with black eyes and hair peered in – Shizune, her nametag said. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Sasuke needs to get his medication now", she explained.

He nodded, feeling numb and anxious at the same time. "'K." Hard as he tried, he couldn't catch Sasuke's gaze anymore – it was as though he'd been shut out of the raven's world, at least for now. "I'll… see you tomorrow, okay?"

Receiving no response he got up, almost startled by how stiff his legs were. His feet had never been as heavy as they were while he dragged himself towards the room's door.

Quite faintly Shizune's soft, soothing voice floated to his ears. "This isn't going to hurt, alright? Just hold still."

Naruto frowned with confusion while emerging from the room.

He'd done nothing wrong, right? So why was he feeling like going back to apologize?

-

Had Naruto looked over his shoulder once more, he might've seen how Sasuke glanced towards him and kept looking at the closed door while a needle punctured the Uchiha's pale skin. The boy then looked away once more, his eyes turning almost glazed and defeated as the drug wiped him numb.

* * *

Naruto had never felt as exhausted as he did when leaving work that day. His head was spinning literally as questions and emotions spun around in a huge mess.

He blinked with surprise when showing up to the parking-lot and finding Iruka waiting for him. "Hey. I thought you were supposed be late at school today."

Iruka shrugged, smiling faintly. "I had to come and see how you're doing after the first day. How did it go?"

He glanced towards the building, deep in thought. "It… was much harder than I thought. But…" Without being called a flash of Sasuke's face floated to his mind. "It was also interesting. I think I'll be okay."

Iruka gave a look that said the man understood. The brunet ruffled his hair. "Don't worry, it'll get easier." The man then nodded towards his rather old, worn blue car. "Do you want a ride?"

He grinned widely. "Don't even ask!" He winced. "I could fall asleep standing up."

Iruka responded with a smile. With that they started the walk towards the car. In some other state of mind he might've noticed how atypically quiet they were while going.

As soon as they got into the car and Iruka drove off the building's parking-lot, he shivered a little when his cell-phone bleeped, announcing that a new text-message had arrived. He wasn't sure what to feel when discovering that it was from Neji.

'_I'm sorry, but I can't come today, after all. There's some schoolwork I need to do._

_'Love you._'

Feeling sinfully relieved, he put away his cell-phone.

He wouldn't have probably been up to talking to Neji, anyway. He needed to think.

His attention shifted once more when Iruka started to cough violently all of a sudden, almost badly enough to make the man gasp for breath. He frowned, intense worry making his blood run cold. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Iruka tried to give him a reassuring smile while fighting to catch his breath, but it didn't convince him at all, especially with how badly his foster father's hands shook and how pale the man was suddenly. "It's… It's okay, just a little cough. Nothing to worry about."

He shivered a little. Since when had Iruka lied to him? "Are you sure?"

"Of course." A faraway look appeared to the brunet's eyes. "Try to get some sleep if you're tired, okay? I'll wake you up when we're home." As he kept watching the man sunk deep into his thoughts, squeezing the steering wheel so hard that knuckles turned white.

Still frowning, Naruto folded his arms and focused on staring at the road.

What the hell was going on? Why was everyone around him keeping secrets all of a sudden?

* * *

TBC?

* * *

A/N: So… How was the second chappy – any good at all? Do ya guys still feel like reading some more?

PLEASE, let me know – you've gotta know by know by now how much hearing your thoughts means to me! (gives HUGE puppy's eyes)

What WOULD BE in the next one: Naruto tries to make sense to all the lies around him while Sasuke struggless to try and trust. Iruka gets a visitor.

GAH – I've really gotta get going now!

Until next time, folks, I hope – be it with this story or some other!

Peace out!


	3. The Melody And The Jarring

A/N: I'm baaack – whether you want it or not! (grins) This chappy was fast to scetch, but it took ages before it'd found its final shape. But now it's finally here! (beams) Hooray?

First off… MAN, thank you so much for those absolutely incredible reviews you've left for this story – you can't even imagine how much they'd warmed my heart! (beams again, and HUGGLES) You guys really are precious. (Oh crap, I sound like Gollum…) THANK YOU! Responses to those I couldn't PM can be found from underneath the chappy, as usual. (grins)

Awkay, because I bet you want to get on with the story already… (rubs hands together) Let's roooll – I truly hope you'll enjoy the ride!

* * *

CHAPTER 3: The Melody And The Jarring

* * *

/ _Naruto's only pleasant dream always started the same way._

_He was sitting in a orange swing that moved almost violently, making him gasp loudly as he stared at the ground spreading what felt like a mile down, then grin widely as his eyes met the perfect blue sky._

_And then he let go. Chuckling with childlike joy, he flew through the air with his arms folded – for a couple of deceitful moments actually believing that he could fly – then landed with his back first surprisingly softly to the ground._

_Usually his dream ended there. During the past few nights, however, a little bit more had appeared to it._

_His dream-self wasn't surprised at all when hearing another boy's voice. "We're both idiots, you know?" Turning his head, he saw a little boy – most likely not older than six or seven – with black hair and eyes lay on the grass right next to him, breathing hard and obviously fighting against smiling. The child then got up, shook away all grass from his clothes and started to walk away. "Now c'mon, dobe. The asshole's gonna kill us if we're late."_

_  
Feeling somewhat disappointed although he couldn't understand why, he also bounced up and dashed after the raven. "Hey, Sasuke, wait up!"_ /

* * *

And then Naruto's eyes flew open as he bounced into a sitting position, his eyes impossibly wide and his heart thumping violently. "Can't be…", he muttered to himself, although it took several seconds until he realized what he was talking about. "How could I have…?" His words faded from his mouth and mind as fast as they'd appeared, leaving behind only a slightly shaky exhale.

For almost five minutes he sat absolutely still in his bed, shivering and thoughts bouncing around his skull, until he finally came to a conclusion that he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. His legs weak and still trembling a little, he hauled his unusually heavy body out of the bed and started to make his way out of the room, then into the hallway.

Quite soon after he'd left the room, his ears perked up to the sounds of a TV. He quirked an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

Iruka rarely watched television. What was going on?

Confused as well as tired, he yawned and started to saunter towards the living room. "Iruka? 'You still awake?"

What he found when stepping into the room made him smile just a little, although some voice inside him screamed out a warning.

The TV was indeed open, showing some movie he couldn't recognize. On the couch lay Iruka, fast asleep and his cheeks slightly flushed. The slight, wheezing sound that came as the man breathed made him wonder if his foster father was coming down with a cold or something.

At first he thought that he wouldn't have the heart to wake the man up, but then he figured that Iruka would be extremely sore in the morning if he'd sleep on the couch. Therefore he walked slowly to the man and shook his shoulder gently. "Hey, 'Ruka, wake up."

The man merely frowned at first, as though unwilling to wake up, then – very slowly – opened his eyes slowly and frowned again. "'Ruto? What are you still doing up?"

"What are you doing sleeping there?" he asked back. He then felt a tiny tremor of worry. "What's wrong?"

Iruka merely shook his head, creating a tiny smile while rubbing his face with one hand. "Things… have just been a bit hectic at work lately, that's all. You have no need to worry."

Most likely more out of exhaustion than anything else, he snorted. "How am I supposed to know that?" He looked away, feeling between embarrassed and hurt. "You never talk to me anymore."

"Neither do you." Iruka's voice was the same calm one that'd always soothed him. He felt the man looking at him. "I can tell there's something on your mind."

At first he hesitated, not sure if he wanted to burden Iruka even further, but in the end the words forced themselves out. "There's… this patient I've been thinking about a lot. I think I've hurt him somehow, though I have no idea how." He rubbed his face with both hands. "He's even come to my dreams, and I don't know what to do."

"Have you tried talking to him?"

He wanted to wince. "It's… not like we could have an actual conversation."

"Then you do the talking." Iruka smiled a little at him. "You've always been good at talking, and I doubt anyone could stay mad at you for long, especially without a reason. Everything will work out."

For the first time in a long while a grin of relief found its way to his face. "Thanks." He then frowned once yet again noticing how pale Iruka was. "Are you sure you're okay?"

The man gave him a look that affectively halted any possible further questions, and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, I'm fine." The brunet then winced when looking at the clock. "Now let's go to bed – it's way too late and we've both gotta wake up early in the morning."

He nodded, not knowing what to say.

He couldn't help wondering what was really going on – and if he even wanted to know.

* * *

The next morning – which marked his fifth shift in Tengoku – Naruto found new determination from his steps as he entered the ward he worked in, only to practically run into Tsunade.

The woman frowned when looking at him. "Are you alright? You look like you haven't slept at all last night."

He barely even heard – all his concentration was elsewhere. "Is Sasuke in his room?"

Tsunade nodded slowly, something extremely sad flashing in her eyes for a moment. "He had another episode last night. He's not at his most coherent."

He felt cold all over, but managed to keep himself focused. "Can I… talk to him for a moment, before I join the others?" Seeing the woman's sceptical look he went on. "Maybe I can help him, or something."

At first he was sure Tsunade would say 'no', but in the end something clearly made her change her mind. "I'll see you in half an hour."

Barely managing to control his enthusiasm, he nodded and started to dash away.

-

Watching the blond go, Tsunade gave a deep sigh.

She'd made her fair share of mistakes when it came to patients. She hoped dearly pushing these two broken souls closer to each other wouldn't turn out to be one of them.

-

At firt Naruto stood behind the door for several seconds as though not knowing what to do, or perhaps not daring to do what he should've. Then, with a deep breath, he knocked and pushed the door open. As he'd expected, Sasuke lay on a bed, staring at the roof with vacant eyes. The boy wouldn't look his way although he must've heard him coming, and it hurt him more than it should've.

Bracing himself bravely, he took some more steps, eventually slumping to the chair placed only a step away from the bed. He couldn't look at the Uchiha as he spoke. "Look… Lately, I've had these dreams, and…" He sighed heavily, and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. To think that he of all people was having difficulties with finding words…! "I don't know what I've done wrong, but I'm sorry, okay?" His eyes were stinging all of a sudden. "I… I wish I could remember you – I'd want to remember you, because it'd obviously mean a lot to you, but I just can't. Hell, I'm not even sure if I believe there's something to be remembered." He grit his teeth, bracing himself once more. "But… If you won't be anywhere near me, we can't make any new memories, either. And… And I'd want to know you. So…" He grit his teeth. "This… This is stupid, okay?" His lips moved, but no words came. Maybe everything necessary had been said already.

For the longest time nothing happened. Then, so suddenly that he blinked with surprise, Sasuke handed him a note with an expression he couldn't read. Curious as always, he folded the paper open and took a look.

'_My name is Sasuke._'

At first he could only stare at the paper. Then, very slowly, a huge smile made its way to his face. Maybe there was still hope, after all.

His eyes all but shining and a grin still on his face, he looked at the raven. Onyx eyes looked back at him with a mixture of emotions he couldn't identify. Without giving it much of a thought – and most likely pushing his luck – he held out a hand for the boy. "C'mon, Sasuke. We're going." When a frown of confusion appeared to the teen's face he went on. "You've been sitting here all alone far too long – you can't keep isolating yourself forever. Today, we'll both join the others."

Sasuke's eyes flashed dangerously, and for a while he was actually afraid of a violent response. In the end, however, the Uchiha only withdrew from him slightly.

But he wasn't discouraged quite that easily. His eyes flashing a little, he took Sasuke's hand and squeezed comfortingly. "I promise you, it won't be as bad as you think. And we'll go there together." He swallowed thickly. "Please, do this – for me."

For the longest time Sasuke remained utterly stiff and unmoving, merely stared at his hand with almost furious eyes. Then, very slowly, the boy got up with such force that it almost shook him off balance. Words weren't needed when onyx orbs found his. '_Fine, I'll do this. But if it all goes wrong it's your damn fault._'

He laughed a little. "Stop looking like that. It can't be that bad."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in response.

Naruto had no idea what was happening to him as they walked out of the room side by side, but he did know one thing. His heart had never been thumping the way it did then. And he could only wonder what it meant.

They never remembered to let go of each other's hand.

* * *

Sasuke hated being the centre of attention more than anything else. And that's why he absolutely froze – his face stiffening to a mask of coldness – when the art-room's door was opened, and everyone's eyes turned towards him.

Juugo gave something that sounded like a grunt of happiness or approval, Gaara nodded at him before focusing on painting, Hinata looked towards him and then away with a bright blush, and Haku smiled warmly at him.

Sakura grinned brightly, a shine he'd never seen before appearing to her eyes. "Hey! And welcome to finally join us!"

When Tsunade approached him, only Naruto's firm hold kept him from spinning around and dashing away. In the end she was so close that only he heard. "Hey Sasuke." For a few more moments he remained as stiff as an animal that was about run from its predator, but then something about the woman's expression made him relax slowly. "You don't have to paint if you don't want to – this is your first time here, so you're free to choose what you want to do. But the supplies here are all at your disposal, okay? And you're allowed to wander around and observe."

He nodded slowly, then – even more slowly – took one step forward, then another. No one was looking at him anymore and Naruto was beside him, blabbering something he couldn't focus on. He felt safe, and that was something he'd been missing for a long time.

Careful not to show any emotions – after all, they were a sign of weakness, weren't they? – he walked up to a windowsill and climbed to sit on it. It was the highest spot in the entire room, from which he could see everything. No one would be able to surprise him there, no one would be able to threaten him anymore.

For a moment his eyes rested on Sakura's chillingly beautiful painting – which represented a dead bird – then he found his eyes straying to how Haku's slow, calm movements painted an amazing wintry landscape.

Most of the time, however – no matter how hard he tried to stop himself – his gaze strayed to Naruto, although he felt a painful tug inside with every single glance. His eyes narrowed a little while he brought his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them.

_You weren't supposed to forget, Naruto. You told me you wouldn't leave. _He looked towards the window, barely noticed how sun was shining outside, so bright that it almost blinded him. _Why the hell do you keep making me want to trust you?_

-

Naruto had never felt as confused as he did that day, while sneaking constant glances towards Sasuke, who had the scarred side of his face towards him while sitting rather high above.

He'd never found it easy to truly connect with people, although he was social and always kind. Some annoying shrink Iruka had told he should meet had even suggested his smile was some sort of a wall against the rest of the world. It was because of his childhood, it'd been explained. It'd taken his friends and Neji several years of hard work to sneak through his barriers.

But now… He'd already bared himself for Sasuke to see, allowed the boy closer than he'd ever been supposed to. He'd done the exact thing Tsunade had warned him about, let a patient too close – and surprisingly enough it made him feel relieved.

Just then he noticed something that certainly caught his attention. Moving as smoothly as if nothing had been going on, Juugo walked on and sat cross-legged right below Sasuke's seat. The raven gave the taller teen a mistrusting glance, but once they'd looked at each other for a second they seemed to accept the other's presence. The two remained in a comfortable silence while Juugo painted and Sasuke sat deep in thought.

Althoug the sight warmed Naruto's heart – it felt good to see Sasuke accept people close to him – it also awoke something dark and unpleasant in his chest and stomach. Something he'd never experienced before that brought a frown to his face with its intensity.

What the heck was wrong with him?!

"If you don't stop gawking at him soon Tsunade will notice." Sakura's mischevious voice brought him back to awareness. She gave him a glance before focusing on her painting. "You two are very cute."

He scoffed. "It's… It's nothing like that", he barely managed to sputter.

Sakura responded with rolling her eyes.

"Don't let her tease you." Haku's soft voice and smile had a soothing affect on his body that'd been tensed up to its extreme all day. The boy's eyes remained on his painting as he spoke. "I think it's wonderful that you have a precious person, Naruto, someone you care about like that. It's not often people find such from a place like this – you're lucky."

At that moment it was deviously easy to forget about the several vivid, painfully deep scars he could see clearly on both of Haku's wrists as the boy's shirt-sleeve moved. He smiled.

Maybe these teenagers weren't as badly messed up as he'd first thought, after all. Perhaps they all had hope – including Sasuke. He found such a thought encouraging.

The following two hours went by rather smoothly, with him not quite managing to keep his eyes away from Sasuke while he kept chatting with Sakura and Haku and watched their artworks progress – as the bird Sakura was painting gained even more shape, and how Haku's dreamy landscape became half-buried by snow. Gaara and Juugo wouldn't have let him anywhere near them, and he didn't want to cause Hinata any further discomfort, so he stayed away from them.

But then he noticed that all of a sudden, after taking a look towards Hinata's painting, Sasuke bounced down from his sitting place and – much to Juugo's dismay – marched out of the room. It took only seconds before his feet moved as well. "I've gotta go to the toilet. I'll be back in a sec, 'k?"

He really wished he only imagined seeing the side of Sakura's mouth twitch. "Knock yourself out and take your time."

Trying his hardest to ignore her words, he spun around and took a step – only to crash straight at Gaara, who was on his way to get some paint. A pair of hazardous eyes met his, making him gulp thickly. "Eh… Sorry."

Gaara merely growled something incoherent.

Figuring that a fast escape was the smartest choice, he started to dash off – only to be stopped by Gaara's voice that surprised him so badly he jumped a little. "You dropped this."

He turned around with a blink, and blinked again when seeing that the boy was a handing a pendant towards him – it was a gray number-plate he'd gotten from the orphanage. _7285 _had been his number.

He gave the redhead a somewhat shaky grin while accepting the offering. "Thanks."

"Hn", was the other boy's soul response before he walked off.

"Hey!" He'd been so deep in thought that Sakura's voice managed to startle him. She was looking at his pendant. "Sasuke has a necklace like that, too."

A cold shiver crossed his whole being, and as hard as he tried he couldn't tell what it meant. "He… does?"

Did that mean… that Sasuke had been right all along? That they'd really met before, in that hellhole? It would explain why he hadn't recognized the boy; he couldn't remember a thing about the years he'd spent in that place.

What the hell had happened?

His head was so filled with chaotic thoughts that it wasn't until Hinata ran past him – almost knocking him down – he noticed something was wrong. He didn't even manage to take a proper look at her before she was already out of the room.

Quite slowly – his mind still stiff and slow – he turned his gaze towards where Tsunade was looking at the painting Hinata had been working on. He'd never seen the woman as pale, nearly shocked, as she was then. Her eyes carried several emotions when turning towards a nurse named Rin. "Call Hiashi, and contact Ibiki", she muttered so quietly that he had to strain his ears to catch it.

Rin nodded solemnly and rushed away without a single look around her.

Naruto almost shivered as he watched how Tsunade hurriedly covered the painting, the frown that'd appeared never leaving her face.

Feeling cold all over, he folded his arms.

So it wasn't enough that Neji had lied about Hinata. Now there seemed to be something shady going on, and he had a feeling it was connected to the Hyuuga family. How many and how big skeletons were there in his boyfriend's closet?

He fought the urge to groan as his head started to hurt.

Since when had everything been such a mess?!

* * *

About an hour and a half later – still slightly dazed by the events and revelations of that day – Naruto was walking towards the lunchroom when he suddenly heard noises that made him freeze to the spot. At first he couldn't – or perhaps didn't want to – recognize the voices speaking, but quite soon everything was far too clear.

"_…_ _painting made Tsunade call Hiashi!_" Neji's voice was a hiss, it was impossible to tell what emotions it covered. "_Do you have any idea how much trouble you may have gotten us in to?! You've gotta stop making those!_"

It sounded like Hinata had been sobbing. "_I… I'm sorry, N-Neji. __But… But the d-dreams won't l-leave me alone. I… I still k-keep seeing h-him, I can't…_" Her voice faded to what sounded like hysterical crying.

There was a small, tense pause. "_Just… Just don't ever make a painting like that again, understood? Unless you want us both to pay the price, stop digging the past already._"

He wished he could've moved – run away, dash into the room – or at least screamed, but his body was completely paralyzed. And then Neji was stood before him.

For the longest time – too long – they simply stared at each other as though they'd never met before, something terrifyingly powerfull spinning around between them. "I… thought you weren't supposed to be in a morning shift", was what Neji managed to get out in the end.

His throat felt impossibly tight as he stared at his boyfriend, who suddenly looked like a total stranger. Coldness seeped into his whole body. "Neji… What the hell is going on? Why didn't you tell me about her?"

For a couple of moments a look of something beyond horror appeared to Neji's eyes, and the boy took a step backwards. Then, so quickly that it startled him, all signs of emotions disappeared, leaving his boyfriend's face completely stoic. "Honestly, Naruto… You shouldn't ask when you don't want to hear the answer." So saying the boy turned around and started to walk away from him without glancing backwards. "Now, I need to talk to Tsunade. Do us both a favor and forget that you ever saw me here." And so the conversation was closed.

His head was utterly blank as he stared at the boy's distancing back, completely paralyzed.

He'd never felt as betrayed in his entire life.

* * *

Much later that evening, Naruto met with Shikamaru, Ino, Kiba and Sai in a park nearby his home. Since Iruka was once again working late, his friends were a good option for listening to him pouring his heart out although they were Neji's friends as well. In one very confusing flood he told about his dreams, about a patient he wanted so desperately to remember, and lastly about Neji and the wall of secrets that'd appeared out of nowhere.

Once he was finished Kiba – who was sitting on the bench next to him, stroking his dog's Akamaru's head – stared at him with somewhat wide eyes. "Wow", was what the boy got out in the end.

Ino, who was sitting on a swing in Shikamaru's lap, gave a growl, her eyes narrowing. "That damn moron…! How can he be keeping secrets from you after all the time you've known each other?! You've always told him _everything_, even all that…!" She squeezed her lips to a thin line when seeing his expression.

Shikamaru took a tighter hold of Ino – as though to make sure she wouldn't attack someone – and groaned. "This is definitely troublesome."

Sai, who was also sitting on his own swing, sneaking constant glances towards the couple, focused on him. "What are you going to do?"

He groaned, burying his face into his hands. He found it very uncomfortable to talk about his life and emotions like this; even after all the years he'd had friends he hadn't gotten used to this aspect of bonding. "Honestly? I have no idea." His head was already starting to hurt from far too much thinking. Confusing flashes danced by his vision faster than he could process them. "I just… I thought he'd be honest with me." He swallowed laboriously. "How do I know how many secrets he's been keeping from me?"

A sullen silence fell as they all sank into their thoughts. A hand he recognized as Kiba's appeared to his shoulder and squeezed comfortingly.

After a long while of silence Kiba spoke. "You know what?" Even without looking he sensed the boy's grin. "There's no use in dwelling in misery out here – it's too damn cold. This calls for some strong coffee at Ichiraku's."

Akamaru barked in agreement.

For a moment Naruto almost agreed, but in the end surprised himself with shaking his head. Something that felt like determination flowed through him. "Nah, thanks, but maybe some other time. There's something I need to do."

* * *

When sneaking into Tengoku, which was eerily dark and quiet with some of the kids asleep and evening shift having taken over, Naruto was beyond relieved to notice that no one saw him. The last thing he needed was questions – even he didn't know what exactly he was doing.

His feet, on the other hand, held no hesitation. And in a moment he found himself right outside the door of a common space, from which the torturously and comfortingly familiar melody he'd heard Sasuke play flowed. His heart jumped a little as he took a step forward.

Inside, the Uchiha was indeed playing, his fingers moving in a heated speed. Naruto had never experienced the kind of reactions his body gave as he stood there listening – the sensations were almost enough to scare him, but he couldn't walk away.

Unable to hold himself back he approached. "Hey. Nice to see you playing again." He wished he would've managed to come up with something more intelligent, but his head just wouldn't work right.

Sasuke gave him a look of slight surprise and some mistrust, but didn't move away. A note was handed to him.

'_What are you doing here this late?_'

He tried to grin a little, but it didn't come out right. "I… was nearby, that's all." He then glanced towards the piano. "I've always wanted to learn to play that thing." He looked at Sasuke, who seemed to be drifting in a world of his own. The melody the boy had been playing still swirled everywhere inside him, sizzling in his mouth and tingling his skin. "Could you teach me?"

At first the Uchiha turned his gaze and looked at him with amusement, as though he'd dropped there from some another planet. Then, slowly and with great caution, the boy moved a little to give him room.

His heart jumped a little although he couldn't understand why as he slid to the seat. They both tensed up when his hand brushed the raven's while his fingers ghosted above the keys. "Sorry…", he muttered, although it was slightly unclear for what he was apologizing. He swallowed thickly, unable to turn his gaze towards the other. "I… guess we'll have to take this thing from the scratch, huh?"

Sasuke didn't respond, didn't even look towards him. Instead the boy's fingers started to move – first so fast that his eyes barely managed to follow them, then much more slowly, barely traceably making sure he was able to follow the lead.

A tiny smile tugged the corners of his lips. So the Uchiha was too proud to help him openly.

He was disappointed to discover that the melody they practiced wasn't the one Sasuke played – this one was much simpler, one meant for beginners. But surprisingly enough he didn't manage to feel down for long; apparently playing this song with the Uchiha gave him the same thrill.

Quite willingly he allowed himself to sink into the combination of sensations – the music, the keys underneath his fingers, the way Sasuke's fingers moved, the Uchiha's soft scent, the strange and very pleasant taste that lingered in his mouth for some reason.

At the moment everything was perfect – no secrets, lies and worries existed. All he could focus on was Sasuke. It felt incredibly good to feel that there was no place in world where he would've rather been, and Sasuke didn't seem to be in any sort of a hurry to leave, either.

In some other situation he might've smirked with amusement. He should've known that two people as messed up as they shared a melody.

He barely even noticed how they leaned slightly closer to each other.

-

Tsunade yawned rather loudly and grumpily while entering the building and stomping through the hallways. One glance towards her old wrist-watch confirmed her darkest assumptions.

It was almost eleven. She hoped for both their sake that Shizune had one hell of a reason to call her when she'd for once fallen asleep before the little hours.

She wasn't exactly ecstatic when finding her employee stood by the door of one of the building's common spaces. "Now what?"

Shizune had a strange expression on her face she didn't quite manage to read; the woman seemed excited and terrified at the same time. "I really think you should see this."

Her curiosity awakening, she peered into the room – and barely managed to believe her eyes. Inside Naruto and Sasuke sat playing a piano, the raven leading and the blond following rather clumsily yet keenly. Together their fingers created a bizarre dance of some sort.

"They've been like that for three hours." Shizune glanced towards her. "Do you think we should send them to bed already?"

For a long moment she simply looked at the boys, then nodded very slowly. A rare smile danced on her lips. "Let them play. It's good to see that they've finally had enough of silence." She then stretched and allowed herself a yawn. "I'm going back to my bed now, okay? Call me if they start ripping each other's hair out or something as unpleasant." It'd be nice to fall asleep with that sight on her mind.

* * *

Naruto had absolutely no clue how long he'd been playing with Sasuke, until he heard a voice that immediately chilled him to the bone. "Why is that trainee still here – and why isn't the patient in his room?"

He could almost hear how Shizune grit her teeht. "Danzo, Tsunade…!"

"…often doesn't know what she's doing." The room's temperature suddenly dropped significantly. "You're just a nurse, I'm a doctor. So stop questioning my authority and get the medication before I've officially had enough with you."

The music they'd been playing stopped abruptly as Sasuke tensed up completely. If he would've dared to, Naruto would've placed his hand above the raven's. He wasn't feeling much better himsef. He knew he was doing something more or less forbidden at the moment; he might be getting into a lot of trouble.

"You." Turning towards the menacing voice, he met a rather old man who had one of his chilling eyes covered. The visible eye was glaring straight at him. "If you value your job here, get out right now. You have no business hanging around patients after working hours."

He gulped somewhat thickly, subconsciously moving so that he was covering Sasuke the best as he could. "We… were just playing, okay?"

The man's face didn't soften. "It doesn't matter what you were doing. You're leaving, _now_ – it's high time the patient gets his medication for the night."

Just then Shizune appeared with clearly apparent reluctance, carrying a needle. Naruto could tell both she and he felt just as helpless when watching how the man grabbed the needle – almost hurting Shizune while doing so – and plunged it to Sasuke's arm so that the teen jolted visibly.

At that moment Naruto couldn't hold himself back any longer. "What the hell are you doing to him?!" he shrieked while fighting not to just rip Sasuke from the man's reach.

"I have no need to explain my deeds to some summer-worker", the man growled, then grabbed Sasuke's shoulder, pulled the teen up and all but glared at the boy. "I need you to look at me so I can make sure the medication is taking affect. Do you understand?"

Instead of the man, Sasuke's slightly hazy, yet flaming eyes found his. For a couple of moments he saw emotions he couldn't understand in Sasuke's eyes, until the onyx orbs turned completely cloudy and unfocused as the drug kicked in. The raven fell against Danzo without a will, damp black locks falling to hide his face.

Naruto opened his mouth, wanting to say something – anything – to help Sasuke, but in the end he didn't have the words.

And so he merely brushed Sasuke's limp hand once more and sent a sharp glare towards Danzo. "I'll tell Tsunade about this."

The man's expression didn't weaver. "You do that, and you'll never see your little friend again. Now beat it."

-

Sasuke didn't have the strength or desire to lift his head as Naruto's steps distanced, eventually fading away completely. He felt sick to his stomach all of a sudden, and covered it with a grimace. In years he hadn't been as close to screaming.

This couldn't be happening again…

He barely heard what was going on around him as someone entered the room.

"Is the nurse out of the picture?" Danzo inquired in a tense voice.

The arrival sounded annoyed. "Yes – I made sure she had business elsewhere."

"Good. Did you bring it?"

There was a grunt of disapproval. "Of course I did. How amateur do you think I am."

Danzo snorted. "I'm not even going to answer that one."

He refused to move or open his eyes when someone approached and whispered to his ear. "You know the thrill – hold absolutely still and this will hurt much less."

He didn't even flinch when a needle pierced the skin of his neck, the searing liquid sending his head spinning.

* * *

As soon as Naruto made it home, he was alarmed when finding the house dark and empty.

Yes, Iruka sometimes worked very late. But never _this_ late.

Swallowing thickly, he stepped inside and closed the door, his hand trembling a little. "Iruka?" His voice didn't sound familiar.

Was his foster father already asleep? He then shook his head at that thought. No – the man wouldn't have gone to bed before he was home.

He was just about to call out again when he finally realized that their phone had been ringing. He managed to take one step before the answering machine snapped to life. In moments a male-voice he didn't recognize floated into the house, filling absolutely everything. "_Naruto, I hope you'll get this message soon. This is doctor Hatake Kakashi from Konoha's general hospital. I'm calling about Iruka Umino – your name was the only one we could find from his papers._" The man sighed heavily. "_You should come to the hospital as soon as possible._"

* * *

While the rest of Tengoku slept more or less peacefully, Sasuke's world was anything but silent and calm. His whole body shook and his eyes were squeezed tightly shut while he sat in a corner of his room, his hands – which were pressed tightly to his ears – working as his only shield against the menacing whispers inside.

'_How pathetic. He doesn't even remember you and still he's filling your head._'

His lips opened, but the words just wouldn't come. How were they supposed to when he couldn't even bring himself to believe in them?

'_He got scarred because of you once. Do you honestly think he wants to face it all again – just because of you? He will never care about you._'

He gasped faintly as the little strength he'd had faded away, leaving him weaker than he ever remembered being. His eyes opened halfway, then narrowed. He was too fucking tired for this.

'_It's about time you face the truth – you're no child anymore. You're all alone, Sasuke-kun, and that's the way you'll always be. He isn't going to save you._'

Slowly yet surely, his body numbed to accept that harsh reality. He winced at the bitter taste in his mouth, and wondered vaguely if he'd thrown up.

'_I'm the only one you've got. You did try to send me away, but that's alright – after all, this way I'm even closer to you. It's such a pleasure to marvel your face from here. No matter what I did, you're still a very, very pretty boy._'

His eyes flashed with such disgust that shouldn't have fit to any human standards.

So that bastard still thought he was beautiful? In that case, there was only one thing he could still do to fight back.

He got up valiantly although his legs barely supported his weight, and made his way to the mirror someone had left hanging on the room's wall. He was beyond relieved it was so dark that he could only see his own silhuette.

He'd make damn sure he'd be no pleasure to that monster's eyes anymore. He'd prove that he was no one's toy.

With one, mighty blow his fist shattered the huge mirror to tens of sharp little pieces.

* * *

TBC, no?

* * *

A/N: Awww man… (winces) The cliffies are back, and just as mean as ever. (screams and runs from thrown weapons)

Eh… Somehow I've got a feeling that I should run for my life, but first… PLEASE, do leave a review to let me know what you thought about this one! It'd seriously make my day, ya know? And I've got some cookies here… (wink, wink)

IN THE NEXT ONE: Several scars need healing as past and future both show their claws. Tears and heartbreak are bound occur, but there's also a scream of hope. (WOW! Now that was cryptic…)

Until next time, folks – 'hope I'll see a lot of familiar faces then!

Be good!

* * *

**sylvir**: I hope you don't mind me responding this way. I just really wanted to thank you for the review and I couldn't PM you, so… (grins sheepishly)

My GOSH, how happy your review made me! (beams, and hugs) I TRIED TO choose characters to the gang who could've easily had mental issues in the anime (a process which I had a lot of fun with, too). I'm so glad to hear you think I've at least somewhat succeeded! (grins) And I'm thrilled to hear you enjoyed that 'interaction scene' (for the lack of a better way to call it); I had a lot of fun writing it.

And now we've got a whole bunch of mysteries and secrets. (shudders) 'Wonder what'll have when all skeletons come crashing down from their closets…

Monumental thank yous for the fabulous review!

I really hope you'll be staying tuned and still excited for more.

ps: Heh, I HATE discontinuing stories, so I try my hardest to work my stories all the way through (for the sake of readers, and my sanity). I'm flattered to hear you appreciate that. (grins) And no worries! With the spur of inspiration and all the ideas I have at the moment, this story will definitely be completed as well unless readers want it to be torn down. (nod, nod)


	4. The Slipping Control

A/N: I'm baaaaaack! (grins) 'Sorry it took me a bit longer than usually, but school's kept me insanely busy lately. (winces)

BUT, before jumping on with the story… GOSH, loads and LOADS of thank yous for all those incredible reviews you sent – they're so many…! (sniffs, and glomps ya all) Thank you so much – you can't even imagine how thrilled they make me! As per usual, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because I think I've been babbling away far more than long enough… Let's rock – I sincerily hope you'll enjoy this one!

* * *

CHAPTER 4: The Slipping Control

* * *

Naruto's eyes were wide while he sprinted through the hospital's hallways, his heart hammering somewhere close to his throat. He didn't remember ever being as scared in his entire life. All he would've needed was _anyone_ telling him that things would work out – that everything was alright – but everyone he passed by gave him pitying looks. And then, faster than he managed to gather himself, he barged into the right ward. The people running through the hallways gave him weird looks while he stood there – leaning to his knees, panting and barely managing to control his tears – but none of them had the time to come over to him. He opened his mouth, but didn't manage to make a sound. It was unbelievable how a person could feel as lonely as he did right then.

And then a hand was placed to his shoulder. He jumped a little at first, but soon calmed down when finding a doctor who's nametag said 'Kakashi Hatake' behind him. "I… I'm Naruto", he wheezed before the man got the chance to speak. "Naruto Uzumaki. I'm… here for… Iruka Umino." He finally managed to even his breathing, which left his head hurting from too many thoughts spinning chaotically inside it. "What's going on? How's Iruka?"

Kakashi gave him a somewhat surprised look before the man's eyes darkened significantly. The silver-haired seemed to swallow down a sigh. "The doctor's office should be empty. Let's go there so we can get a little bit of peace and quiet, okay?"

He nodded numbly, at the moment too horrified to feel anything at all.

Later on he couldn't remember the walk to the room they eventually entered, nor could he remember absolutely anything about the room. All that fit into his head were Kakashi's disheartening words. "Naruto… I'm not sure how much Iruka has told you, but he's been very sick for the past three months – so sick that he's almost been hospitalized for several times."

Those words struck all breath and warmth out of Naruto, made him feel sick to his stomach. Three months, and he hadn't noticed a thing?! It took at least a full minute before he managed to wheeze. "W… What's wrong with him?"

Kakashi visibly hesitated for a long time before speaking quietly. "It's lung-cancer." The man took his time before going on, constantly observing his face as though looking fot something. "According to his papears it was caught early on, but the radiation therapy and chemo have taken their toll. That's why he caught a pneumonia and collapsed earlier today."

Naruto couldn't speak, couldn't move, couldn't even think. For the upcoming five minutes all he could do was to fight against throwing up and collapsing under the cold wave that washed over him. All of this felt surreal to him.

Why hadn't Iruka told him? How could he have missed this?!

And then came anger.

This wasn't fair – this couldn't be right! Iruka… Iruka had never even smoked.

When he finally spoke, he barely realized that the words came from him. "Can I… Can I see him? Please?"

Kakashi sighed heavily. "I'm afraid he's still halfway unconscious; he wouldn't even know you're there. Besides, I'm not enterily sure if he's up to taking visitors right now – he's still pretty weak from fever and medication." He sensed the man looking at him, but couldn't bring himself to meet the gaze. "But I think you can come and see him tomorrow if his condition remains stable."

For several minutes, he had no idea how long, it was utterly silent until Kakashi spoke. "Is there anyone who could spent tonight with you?"

He thought about it for a long moment, this all still far beyond his capacity of understanding, then nodded slowly.

He sensed Kakashi's nod. "Good. I think you should call them, okay? If you want me to, I can give you a ride home – I've already missed my coffee-break, anyway."

For the next hour Naruto operated as though in a fog of some sort. At first he tried to call Neji, but the boy wouldn't answer his phone. ('Since when has he gone to bed early?' a distant part of him wondered.) Then – his fingers moving mechanically – he chose Sai's number, and jumped with surprise when the boy answered almost instantly. Without paying any attention to his words he gave a very jumbled explanation about what had happened. Once the phone-call was over he let Kakashi lead him forward. The only thing he later remembered from the quiet ride home was that Kakashi's car smelled like dogs.

When he made it home, he found Sai leaning against the wall of the house. It was easy to tell that the boy hadn't slept all night. Before he could ask what was wrong the boy noticed him and spoke. "Let's go inside, 'k? It's cold out here."

Both exhausted, upset and deep in thought, they made their way to the living room and flopped to the couch without saying a word. As soon as he stopped moving flashes of Iruka and the echo of Kakashi's words filled Naruto's head, and he had to blink furiously to ease the hellish stinging of his eyes.

Sai's words startled him; he'd barely remembered the boy was there. "Are you feeling any better?" His friend's voice was a lot softer than usual.

He focused on the ceiling and took a deep breath. "Not really." Then – worried about his friend and coming to a conclusion that he needed some distraction – he glanced towards the boy beside him. Sai never stayed up late; something was obviously going on. "What's wrong?"

Sai didn't look at him when responding after a long silence. "I… confessed to Ino today." The boy shuddered a little, as though holding back something. "It didn't go exactly as planned."

A tinge of sadness traveled through him, and he would've hugged his friend if he hadn't known that it'd only make the boy feel worse. "Sai…" For some reason nothing else came.

Sai shook his head furiously, rubbing his face with one hand. "I… I'd rather not talk about it, 'k?"

He nodded, undestanding better than well. He wasn't feeling exactly ecstatic about the idea of talking either.

And so they sat there most of the night, trying to give each other soundless support. Neither had ever had a night as long.

-

When Naruto woke up very early the following morning – sore from spending the night on the couch and still very tired – he discovered that Sai was still sleeping beside him with a frown on his face. It took a moment before he remembered what had happened, but when he did a heavy weight appeared to his chest and stomach.

The house was too cold and silent without Iruka around.

Stretching his stiff muscles, he decided that if he'd stay home all day he'd go out of his mind. That's why he left Sai a note – telling the boy to get some breakfast before leaving – then searched for some clothes and got dressed without paying any attention to it. He glanced towards the refridgerator while sauntering towards the door, but couldn't bring himself to even think about eating. His legs seemed to weight a ton as he started his seemingly endless journey towards Tengoku.

* * *

As soon as Naruto made it to his working place, he felt cold shivers travel through him once discovering how eerily, unnaturally empty and quiet the place was. He frowned.

_Where the heck is everyone?_

Then sounds of almost whispered words made their way to his ears. Curious as always, he followed them – and felt chills run through him when discovering the solemn crowd of doctors and nurses stood by the door of Sasuke's room. A taste he hated immediately filled his mouth.

Something was very, _very_ wrong.

Just then Tsunade emerged from the room, seeming tired and worried, and noticed him. Her frown deepened when she looked at him. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

He barely managed to pay attention, for his head was whirring with entirely different matters. His throat was so tight that he barely managed to speak. "What's wrong with Sasuke?"

Tsunade sighed heavily, he shoulders slumping. "He… had a very rough night." Her voice was slightly raw. "Right now we're trying to coax him out of the room so he could get some medical attention."

He frowned, the coldness he'd already felt exploding tenfold. Worry made his heart jump out of sync. "What are you talking about?" Not waiting for her response he pushed his way through the crowd to Sasuke's room – and immediately wished he hadn't.

In the furthest corner of the room – all alone at the moment despite the huge number of people present – Sasuke had slumped down to the floor, back leaning against the wall and legs brought protectively to his chest. He'd never seen anyone's eyes look like the boy's did at the moment; the Uchiha seemed completely disconnected and fully alerted to attack anyone trying to approach him at the same time. What truly caught his attention, however, were the deep, still bleeding and obviously self-inflicted wounds on the boy's face and arms. Bloodied shards of broken glass were scattered all around the room.

He swallowed thickly, feeling ready to cry and scream. His knees felt weak.

_Oh no…_

What the hell had happened?!

"He's let none of us approach him", Tsunade explained in a dark tone. "But we need to get him out of there before he hurts himself again."

The words came before his thought. "Let me try." His whole system filled with desperation and determination, he met Tsunade's disbelieving gaze. "He… He'd never hurt me, okay? So let me try. Maybe he won't push me away."

Tsunade contemplated for the longest moment, then nodded with apparent reluctance. "Be careful."

Flashing a look of gratitude at her, he focused on Sasuke and started to move. He had absolutely no idea what he was doing, and he was scared out of his mind. But he was also filled with determination. Maybe this was a problem he could actually do something about – he couldn't stand feeling helpless anymore.

There was pitiably little he could do for Iruka, but maybe he'd be able to do something for Sasuke. At very least he was about to try.

Very slowly, as though he'd been approaching some very dangerous animal, he first walked towards where the other boy had taken his seat, then sat cross-legged about a step from the raven. He could tell Sasuke sensed his presence but the boy didn't react in any way, and he also kept his silence for a moment, wondering where he should start.

This was not something he'd have any sort of a training for.

"Sasuke?" His voice almost broke while his heart raced, and he licked his lips before managing to go on. "Sasuke… I know it hurts, okay? But… you need to let us help you. Please, let me help you."

Seconds stood absolutely still, and the whole room filled with anxiety. Then, very slowly, Sasuke lifted his head to look at him with somewhat hazy eyes. It took his all to create a smile instead of a grimace when he saw the new, deep wounds on the boy's face. Some of them were still bleeding, and blood traveled down the boy's cheeks like trails of red tears. All he could see, however, were the Uchiha's eyes.

It was very clear that those onyx pools were asking for help. And in all honesty, he had no idea if he had the way to offer such. But that wouldn't stop him from trying.

Risking it all, he outstretched a hand and laid it to Sasuke's. The boy jumped and cast a look of mistrust and threat towards him, but didn't retreat. "Everything's alright", he whispered, like it'd been a secret between the two of them. Maybe his quiet tone would force the Uchiha into really listening. "Let me help you."

Several agonizingly long seconds ticked by, until something none of the people in the room – least of all the two of them – had known to expect. Sasuke actually moved towards him – only to collapse right into his arms.

Naruto's eyes flew wide and his lips opened to a soundless scream while he caught the falling raven, subconsciously pulling the unconscious teen protectively close to him. His heart hammered and his head spun while he remained still, not daring to move.

The only thing that fit into his head was that Sasuke was a lot lighter, warmer and softer than he'd expected.

And then the normal order of the world resumed. He shivered a little with surprise when finding Tsunade stood before the two of them. There was worry and something much harder that wasn't directed towards him in her eyes. "Naruto, Sasuke's going to be okay, but he's lost a lot of blood and he's exhausted. You need to let us take care of him, okay?"

He swallowed thickly and realized that he was shaking. It felt like _everything_ had been crashing down on him at once. "'K", he breathed out.

Letting go of Sasuke was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, and it took his all to convince himself that it needed to be done. It was even harder to watch the boy being dragged away. Once again he was shaking with emotions he wasn't quite allowed to show at the moment.

"Naruto." Turning towards Tsunade's voice, somewhat startled by her sudden presence, he was relieved to discover that it was just the two of them present. Her expression, however, didn't quite allow him to relax. "Shizune told me that Danzo was here last night. I went through Sasuke's papers twice, and came to a conclusion that the medication Danzo was reported giving him wasn't such he'd be taking." She took a deep breath, obviously not wanting to ask what needed to be voiced. "Naruto… What happened last night?"

In about seven fleeting seconds a million thoughts zoomed past his mind; worry for Sasuke's sake, intense fury towards Danzo and startle over the realization that Tsunade knew he'd visited Tengoku outside working hours. Then – as though his head had simply decided to give up – he sighed heavily and told the little he knew.

* * *

/ _The words and sensations floating through Naruto's dreams felt almost like memories, although he was sure they couldn't possibly be such._

_"My name is Naruto."_

_He could've sworn he felt someone swatting his head._

_"You're a real dobe, aren't you?"_

_"And guess what? We'll be friends forever – I will never forget about you! And that's a promise."_

_The feeling of connection was so strong and real that even though he was asleep it almost took his breath away._

_He felt pain, but it wasn't his._

_"Don't you get it already?! There's nothing you can do to help me, so leave me alone!"_

_The stench he couldn't identify and screams were much too real, as was the pain in his stomach._

_"SASUKE!"_ /

* * *

And then he woke up with a yelp, instantly bouncing into a sitting position when he felt a hand on his back. "Naruto?" There was a somewhat worried look on Sakura's face as she stepped so that he could see her properly. "It's five. Shouldn't you be going home?"

He blinked a little, working his hardest to clear his head. "Tsunade… said that I could go, but…" He trailed off, looking away from the girl. Somehow going to home – where it was empty and quiet without Iruka – felt far from appealing.

Obviously understanding that this wasn't something he was willing to talk about, Sakura fixed her attention elsewhere. A wide grin appeared to her face while she brushed the book he'd been practically sleeping on. "Aphasia, huh?"

He felt some heat sneaking to his cheeks. "I just… wondered if it'd be any good."

A somewhat tender smile rose to Sakura's lips. "It's not a bad thing that you care about him so much, you know?" She met his eyes, a lot more serious already. "Sasuke's… never had anyone, okay? Apart from us, of course. He enjoys having you around, although he doesn't know how to show it."

He looked away from her, not really sure what to think and feel; there was a little bit too much weighing his mind at the moment for thoughts to make any sense. Just then he noticed that they weren't alone. Sitting in the loneliest corner of the tiny library – his empty eyes fixed longingly on the rows of books – was Juugo, legs brought to his chest. It was easy to tell just how much ache lingered behind the boy's eyes.

He frowned, feeling a tinge of sadness. "Why is he so sad? I thought he was recovering."

Sakura's green eyes darkened. "He is. It's just that… well, some days are still much harder than the others." She thought for a long time before going on. "I'm not sure if you knew this, but… A little bit before you started working here a patient named Kimimaro died. It was a more or less public secret that he and Juugo had something going on, although it's forbidden." She sighed a little. "They always sat here in the library whenever it was raining outside – just like it is today. Kimimaro would read to Juugo for hours."

He found himself completely speechless, and was forced to fold his arms to his chest with a shiver. Once again the harsh reality of just how much these kids had gone through struck him across the face.

It was Sakura's voice that coaxed him out of his thoughts. "Go home before you fall asleep sitting again." She swatted his head gently. "And don't worry; Sasuke's gonne be fine. We all are."

He managed to coax a smile while nodding and starting to head towards the door. "See you tomorrow."

No matter how little he liked the idea, he'd have to go and face the silent house eventually. How much help would he be to Sasuke, Iruka or anyone else he didn't even have the courage to go home?

* * *

When Naruto finally made his way home – utterly exhausted, worried beyond any human belief and on the verge of tears after visiting a still unconscious Iruka, and having been denied from seeing Sasuke – he felt like wincing when seeing a familiar figure stood by the house's doorsteps, drenched wet from the rain that'd been falling all day.

After gathering himself for several seconds he kept approaching. "Neji? What are you doing here?" It wasn't until then he noticed that there was a huge, dark bruise decorating the boy's left eye, and a wave of coldness traveled through him. "What happened?"

Neji shook his head. "It's nothing important." The boy took a brief glance towards him. "Have you calmed down already?"

He swallowed thickly, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "I'm still pissed, and disappointed. It hurts that you can't be honest with me."

Neji didn't look at him when speaking – in fact, didn't seem to be looking at anything at all. "If I told you the truth… you'd never see me the same way again. You wouldn't even know me anymore."

Not knowing what to feel and think, he sighed heavily and lifted his gaze towards the sky although rain fell directly to his eyes. It took a long moment before he managed to speak. "Do you really think anything you'd tell me would change a thing – that I'd somehow think differently about you? You should know me better by now." He lowered his gaze, and looked towards Neji once more. The boy was utterly unmoving. "But I don't think that's the real problem. Am I right?"

Neji winced. "I _can't_ tell you, okay?"

Naruto could feel how his eyes darkened while an exhausted sigh escaped him. Honesty was the only thing he'd ever asked of Neji. And now…

He was too tired and irritated to finish that thought.

"Why did you come here?" The voice didn't sound quite like his; it shook with both anger and desperate hope.

Something dropped and turned cold inside him when Neji shrugged. "I don't know."

Swallowing against the bitter taste to rose into his mouth, he started to make his way towards the apartment's door. "Go home before you freeze to death. I'm too tired and fed up to keep circling around like this."

He already made it to the door before Neji's uncharacteristically quiet voice made him halt. "Are we over?"

He froze. Suddenly he had no idea what to respond. His hand moved mechanically, searching for a key and opening the door. Iruka's familiar scent hit him harder than a fist. "Maybe we should be." With that he stepped in, closed the door – and slumped to the floor as his legs gave way. And at that moment he finally did what he'd felt like doing all day.

He buried his face into his hands and bursted into hysterical sobs.

* * *

/ _The first time Iruka met Naruto was the coldest and the most cruel day of winter._

_A doctor named Jiraiya – whom he'd known for years – was waiting for him with an uncharacteristically solemn expression. "I'm sorry I called you this late, but this was urgent." The man sighed a little, quite clearly having had a very frustrating day. "I've spent all morning fighting to keep them from locking this kid into some institution."  
He blinked twice, then frowned. "I'm just a teacher."_

_Jiraiya smirked. "A teacher and a psychologist, remember? They don't need to know that you've only ever worked as a teacher." The man then grew serious again. "You're my last hope, okay?"_

_Iruka restrained something – a smile or a groan, perhaps. This wasn't their first discussion of this type, and he doubted this would be the last. Silently admitting defeat, he started to walk alongside the man. "So… what's the kid's story?"_

_"He's Naruto Uzumaki, age ten. He's lived in a orphanage basically all his life – until he was delivered here this morning, by whom, we don't know. He doesn't remember anything but his name, and that he's lived in an orphanage." The man's eyes darkened, just like they always did when the older talked about something he didn't like. "When he arrived he was almost hysterical. We had to give him strong sedatives. He also had several pretty severe wounds, the worst of them on his stomach – that's why he was sent here in the first place."_

_He fought back a deep sigh. "So basically, he's in a pretty bad shape?"_

_Jiraiya nodded a little. "Yeah, that's about it." The man then gestured towards the tiny room before them. "There he is."_

_He looked towards the pointed direction, and felt a twinge inside._

_Sure enough, Naruto was sitting on his bed, curled so that the child looked as small as possible. He could easily see that the boy was shivering. Messy and filthy blond hair drooped willessly, hollow eyes stared at nothing. He'd never seen a child look quite as defeated, and it broke his heart._

_And then, just as he was about to speak, the boy lifted his gaze. Suddenly hope-filled, even scared blue eyes met brown. In an instant Iruka knew that there was no going back._

_"I don't need any evaluations", he murmured, not managing to look away from the child. "Naruto isn't going to a group-home or another orphanage. As soon as all paperwork and legal issues are done, he's coming home with me."_ /

* * *

In the hospital Iruka's eyes opened slowly, as though with reluctance. A frown made it to his face when he saw a blurry figure hovering beside his bed. "'Ruto?"

"Naruto's alright, although scared for your sake." That voice… was so familiar… "I sent him home to get some rest – he sat here for hours."

Just then the figure started to clear, and his heart skipped several beats when he recognized the tired face looking at him. Several harsh coughs erupted. "Kak… ashi?"

Kakashi's expression was such he couldn't read. "You can't even imagine how big of a shock I got when I was told I had a new patient, and it turned out to be you." The man kept a tiny pause, most likely to compose himself. "I… would've never expected you to be back."  
He tried his hardest to speak, but for some reason all words got stuck in his throat. He moved his hand weakly, but Kakashi didn't seem to notice.

The silver-haired turned around, clearly about to leave. "I'll let you get some more rest now. You have a pretty bad case of pneumonia – it'll get better, but it'll take some time and a lot of strength." The man seemed to be about to say something more, but in the end swallowed the words. "I'll see you again as soon as I can."  
Desperation filled him, and his heart pounded as though about to break.

_Kakashi…!_

For a moment the doctor stopped, as though hearing somehow, but then kept walking on. The door's sound was hollow as it closed, separating them. Something hot and uncomfortable he couldn't recognize in his current condition filled his eyes.

_I'm sorry._

With that thought exhaustion and medication pulled him to sleep.

* * *

Tsunade had never felt as tired, pissed off and disappointed as she did while sitting in the hospital's hallway that day, about a million thoughts bouncing around her head.

So Danzo had given Sasuke something he shouldn't have.

Danzo – _a doctor_ – had harmed one of her patients, possibly beyond repair.

She was almost glad they hadn't been able to find the man just yet, for she didn't know what she would've done if she would've gotten her hands on him.

"I brought you some coffee." Shizune's tired voice brought her out of her dark musings. It was easy to tell that the younger woman barely stayed on her feet; the past couple of days had been long for a lot of people.

She nodded with gratitude, then took a sip of the drink. It tasted bitter, which she welcomed gladly.

It took a minute or two before she managed to speak. "How's Sasuke?"

"He's waking up, slowly but surely. They're keeping an eye on him to determine whether restraints are needed or not."

She winced inwardly. Sasuke and restraints were a horrible combination. She hoped dearly those idiots wouldn't reduce to such.

"Tsunade…" Shizune was almost cautious – the dark-haired knew she wasn't going to like this part. "We're going to need a blood test to determine what exactly was put into his system, right?"

She nodded with utter reluctance, feeling sick to her stomach. Taking that sample was not going to be pretty.

"I can do it." There was something almost despearate in Shizune's eyes. The woman hesitated. "I… I was the one who fetched the sedative for Danzo – it's because of me this happened. So, if there's anything…" She trailed off.

She sighed heavily, and gave a tiny nod. At the moment she understood her employee's guilt much too well. "Just be careful, understood? We both know what he can be like."

Shizune nodded this time, seeming to pale slightly, then turned and started to walk away.

As soon as she was left alone Tsunade leaned her head against the wall with a loud groan. She closed her eyes when they stung hellishly from lack of sleep and something else.

If she had to break her own rules and let a patient too close, why did it have to be someone this fragile? Because at the moment it felt like she'd been trying to keep melting snow in her hands.

* * *

Naruto didn't remember how long he'd been sitting by Iruka's bed, halfway asleep, when movement coaxed him into wakefulness. Shaking away the traces of sleep, he grinned faintly when noticing that Iruka's eyes were open. "Hey! I thought you were gonna sleep all day again."

Iruka tried to smile, but it didn't come out quite right. "Hey", the man rasped, then took a good look at his face and turned serious. He could've sworn he heard a heavy, almost defeated sigh. "You… know, don't you?"

And suddenly all the well-trained composure he'd managed to gain didn't hold any longer. His shoulders slumped, and a tiny sniff escaped. "Why… Why didn't you tell me?"

Iruka sighed heavily, not quite daring to look at him while struggling into a sitting position. "I… just couldn't bring myself to do it. I couldn't…" The man gestured towards himself. "… bring this on you, too." There was a long pause. "I'm sorry."

He didn't manage to grin while shrugging. "I can take this, okay? So stop worrying about me. Aren't you supposed to be focusing on getting better?"

The man's eyes flashed with sadness before the brunet broke into a fit of harsh coughs, barely managing to breathe under the attack. Feeling infuriatingly helpless, he made gentle circling motions on Iruka's back, hoping from the bottom of his heart that it made the man feel at least a little bit better.

At the moment it felt suffocatingly unfair to him that when he finally had people he cared about deeply, he couldn't even protect them.

* * *

Sasuke's head was hazy and his skull throbbed when he woke up slowly, quite soon realizing that the whole world was spinning before his eyes. He frowned with extreme discomfort, not quite managing to understand anything.

Very slowly his mind managed to register that he was in a hospital room. The combination of memories and the stench made his heart beat with such speed that he was sure it wouldn't be able to take more. Only something – the drugs those people had given him, perhaps – kept him from losing his composure completely. He _hated_ feeling as confused and out of control as he did at the moment, and the pain ravishing his arms and face certainly didn't help matters.

What the hell had happened? Where was…?!

Just then the room's door opened. He bounced into a sitting position – so fast that he almost had to lay back down – but something inside him relaxed when instead of a staff-member he saw Naruto. The boy seemed utterly exhausted and had lines of worry on his face, which troubled him for some reason, but when seeing him awake the blond grinned with apparent excitement. "Hey, you're finally up!" A bit faster than he would've liked the boy walked up to his bed, and sat to the chair placed beside it. Suddenly the hilarity was gone; there was a serious look that shouldn't have belonged to them in Naruto's eyes as they examined him. "Sasuke… Do you remember what happened, at all?"

His eyes narrowed as he looked away, almost like trying to keep Naruto from catching a glimpse of the memories that flashed by his eyes.

/ _"The more you keep fighting, the more this will hurt."_ /

/ _"Silly boy. Did you really think getting away was that easy?"_ /

/ _"Shh… Keep your mouth shut, now. We wouldn't want anyone to interfere, would we?"_ /

/ _"Don't worry, Sasuke-kun. We'll find you anywhere."_ /

Naruto's sudden words made him shiver a little. "It's okay, you know?" The blond was looking at him with a slight smile. "That you don't remember – it's okay. As long as you're feeling better, that's all that matters."

He couldn't help all but staring at Naruto, and it took a lot to hide everything there was bubbling underneath his skin. All of a sudden it wasn't so hard to believe that the boy he'd once known wasn't completely gone, after all.

So deep in thought he was, that he was almost startled when Naruto pulled out something and offered it to him. The gift turned out to be a sandwich of some sort. The blond grinned somewhat sheepishly. "I got this from the cafeteria – I figured you'd be hungry, seeing as how badly the hospital-food sucks." The boy looked at him as though trying to read his mind. "It's got tuna and tomato. I'm not sure why, but… I had a feeling you'd like it."

For several moments all he could do was look at the blond, feeling scarily lot like the past years had been nothing but a sick nightmare and he'd been back in his childhood-days again. Then, before he could process what he was doing, he'd taken the bread. After casting a look even he couldn't read towards Naruto he started to eat. A comfortable silence fell into the room.

-

For the first time in a while Naruto felt a wave of joy as he watched how Sasuke ate with a relatively calm expression, obviously feeling very much comfortable at the moment.

Feeling comfortable with _him_, he would've very much liked to think for some reason.

When Sasuke stopped eating – sooner than he'd expected – he couldn't keep himself from grinning. "I knew you were hungry. I'm glad you liked it." He then allowed a couple of moments of silence to drift in order to keep the raven from becoming overwhelmed. "Is there… anything else you'd need?"

Sasuke thought for a long time, as though not understanding his words at first, then shook his head slowly. Onyx eyes turned towards him, visibly desperately trying to say something he couldn't understand. He was about to ask, until he noticed that the raven's lips were about to part. He held his breath – as did the whole room – anxiously waiting for the words possibly about to come.

And then the room's door opened. Turning their heads, they saw a somewhat apologetic looking Shizune stood by the doorway with a needle. At that moment all hell broke loose.

He'd never seen anyone move as fast as Sasuke did then. Before he could even open his mouth the raven had jumped from the bed and made his way to the room's corner. Onyx eyes flamed with a wild aninal's uncontrollable terror as they drifted between the two of them.

Naruto swallowed thickly, feeling cold all over. He was no professional, but even he knew that if he wouldn't do something things might turn very, very ugly. And that's why he dared to move towards the obviously unstable Uchiha.

"Hey, Sasuke!" Feeling almost panicked, he laid a gentle hand to the boy's shoulder. "Sasuke, it's okay – everything's alright. They're just trying to take a blood sample, okay? It won't hurt, I promise."  
But Sasuke didn't calm down. And after a few endless moments there was something he first thought was his imagination. "D-Don't…"

His eyes widened, already knowing the truth.

And then the voice – raspy and choked, raw from lack of use – spoke again. "Don't…!" Sasuke was panting heavily, the words clearly almost too much for the teen. And then came something that sounded like a threatened wild animal's yelp. "Don't touch me!"

* * *

TBC.

* * *

A/N: And once again I left the story to the about last spot you would've wanted me to, ne? (winces) I'm a real bullie.

GAH, it's already waaaaaaay too late and I should be in bed, but before getting there… PLEASE leave a review to let me know your thoughts on this chappy! Awww, c'mon, I know you wanna click that button.

IN THE NEXT ONE: Some time has passed, and everyone's trying their best to cope as things change in a dramatic pace. Some take steps forward, some fall backwards. The frail peace of Tengoku is disturbed when some new faces appear to work there.

Until next time – I really hope ya'll all be staying on board for that one!

Take care!

* * *

**kai**: Everyone's having a really hard time in this one, ne? (sniffs) Poor teens! But things can only get better from here for them… I hope…

GAH, Danzo…! (grits teeth, then spits) Not even going to get started there. Let's just say that in my opinion, a nice, long and painful punishment would be nothing more than he'd deserve. (growls)

Heh, right now I'm so filled with inspriration when it comes to this lil' story that there's no way I could take long breaks. (grins) Aww, I'm happy to hear you appreciate the somewhat timely updates!

Gigantic thank yous for the review!

See you next time, no?

-

**ZakuKura**: Awww, I sure will! (grins from ear to ear) It's great to hear you've enjoyed the journey thus far that much.

Enormous thank yous for the review!

I really hope you'll be staying tuned.


	5. The Changing Tides

A/N: Agh! Thanks to a busy schedule, it took me longer than usual to update. (pouts) BUT, now the new chapter is finally here – whether that's a good thing or not! (grins)

First off, of course… My gosh, thank yous so much for all those amazing reviews – I seriously can't believe you've liked the story thus far THAT much! (gasps, then glomps) You guys make this story feel loved. Thank you! Heh, as per usual with my fics, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because you've already waited longer than necessary… Let's rock! I sincerily hope ya guys will enjoy this one. (gulps)

* * *

CHAPTER 5: The Changing Tides

* * *

_One Month Later_

* * *

For the past four weeks Naruto had been walking around as though in a fog of some sort, barely managing to understand what was going on around him.

Iruka was feeling worse – he could see it clearly, although the man worked his hardest to try and hide it. He heard the man throwing up all day and night long, and when his foster father wasn't feeling sick he was trying to fight sleep to try and convince him that everything was alright. Didn't the brunet realize that he knew things _weren't_ alright?

Outside home, however, it was a different story. For as of lately, the strange little world inside Tengoku's walls had been full of miracles.

Sasuke talked; not much, of course – barely even sentences – but still. The boy's voice was a little raw from all the years it hadn't been used, but Naruto enjoyed hearing it; far more than he should've, he might've noticed under different circumstances. And he feared that any given morning Sasuke might've lost his voice, which had taken so long to be regained.

So far, however, nothing such had happened. And little by little, with extremely slow progress, Sasuke started to seem truly _alive_.

That morning, he found Sasuke from the Uchiha's room. The boy who'd formerly only laid in his bed was now stood before the window, observing the world outside with watchful eyes. Hearing, or perhaps sensing, his presence the boy peered over his shoulder and gave a nod of recognition.

He grinned. "Hey!" He observed the boy for a moment, noticing that the raven appeared exhausted, then remembered. "Did Tsunade's therapy session wear out?"

Sasuke didn't look towards him. "Hn." Then, as though remembering that he was able and allowed to do so, the boy spoke. "No."

Not fooled by the answer, he smiled a little, then pulled something from his bag. "Listen up. I know how much you love music, so I thought I should bring you something." He revealed his offering, which turned out to be a book filled with the notes for tens of songs. "I… thought you could teach me some of these. Iruka bought this book for me but I've never played, so…" He trailed off, feeling stupid all of a sudden.

The look Sasuke gave him after a couple of seconds, however, quickly changed the trail of his thoughts. Because the message was clear even without words.

'_Thank you._'

They sat in a remarkably comfortable silence for a while, until his mouth finally worked. He glanced almost longingly towards the room's door. "Do you think we could play for a while, before lunch?"

There was no hesitation before Sasuke nodded. Nothing such showed, but he could've sworn a smile, or at least a tiny smirk, was threateningly close. "'K."

* * *

When Sasuke didn't show up for lunch, Tsunade was worried. But when she realized that Naruto was missing as well, her dark thoughts turned into a tiny smirk.

So she had been right all along.

Leaving the other teens into the very capable hands of Shizune and a couple of skilled assistants, she followed her hunch.

At first she couldn't find anything. Then, so suddenly that she stopped for a second, she heard the music and the others sounds. When she stopped to a certain doorway, she found it hard to resist te temptation to smile.

Inside, Naruto and Sasuke were playing the piano, hands moving with such speed that it was impossible to tell which one's hand was which. But this time, there was something different from the boys' usual piano-lessons.

Naruto, of course, was just as excited and overjoyed as usual – these little sessions always seemed to erase whatever burden there was on the blond's young shoulders. But this time Sasuke seemed different as well. The raven was visibly relaxed, and allowed Naruto physically closer than he'd ever let anyone. Those onyx eyes had also never looked as alive as they did then. For the first time Tsunade felt like she'd been looking at a regular teenage boy when watching the Uchiha, and she welcomed the change gladly.

Suddenly, with a note Naruto clearly misplayed, the practice was over. The blond grinned sheepishly. "Heh, 'guess that didn't go right."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, in which a careful observer could see something foreign. "That… is the easiet song in the book, dobe."

Tsunade felt her eyes widen with shock, and for a fleeting second Naruto seemed equally surprised. That was the most they'd ever heard Sasuke speak at one go.

Then, loyal to his nature, Naruto recovered fast and stuck out his tongue. "It's not my fault I've got clumsy fingers. Now stop making fun of me and teach."

With another roll eyes from Sasuke the lesson went on, with the two completely lost into a world of their own.

Tsunade was just about to relax when she sensed someone approaching. Turning her gaze, she felt much colder than before when seeing the look on Shizune's face as the younger woman walked up to her. "What's wrong?" she inquired out of instinct.

Shizune sighed heavily. "Haku… didn't show up to eat with the others. He didn't show up for the therapy that's about to start, either."

She felt something dark and cold settle into the pit of her stomach. Haku had been making such good progress that she'd been a fool enough to think that the chance of a relapse was over. And now… She groaned, rubbing her face with one hand. "I'll go and talk to him."

Unfortunately, however, Shizune wasn't finished. There was a dark look in the younger woman's eyes. "There's more." She heard a loud gulp. "Hinata… _painted_ again. Ibiki and Hiashi are both on their way here."

* * *

The situation wasn't too far from a chaos when Tsunade finally made it to the scene. In a tiny room, Hinata had hunched into a corner. The other two occupants, Hiashi Hyuuga – who'd obviously come straight from work – and Ibiki Morino, were snarling at each other. The latter was standing between the father and daughter, as though working as a barrier of defence.

"She's my daughter – I have every right to choose who gets to talk to her!" Hiashi snarled with narrowed eyes, his hand flying towards the painting in the room's corner – Tsunade noticed with chills that it was a bloodfilled, snapshot-like picture of a very bloodied body lay in the middle of a dark room, with two more figures hiding in the room's corner and a one more figure stood right before the clearly butchered one. "That painting proves just how much damage you've done! I'm not going to let you harass her without me being here!"

"We're trying to solve a crime!" Ibiki growled back. "And if you're trying to prevent that, I'll gladly have you arrested for obstruction of justice."

Hiashi's eyes narrowed even further. "I'm not letting you anywhere near my daughter!"

At this point Tsunade decided to step in. Her eyes were slits as she stood before Hiashi. "Let the officials do their work – for Hinata's sake. Understood?"

At first Hiashi's lips opened, but in the end the man stormed out, slamming the door as he went.

Once the door was closed, thick and electric silence lingered in the room for the longest time, until it was cut by the frailest of voices. "We… We saw…"

Both adults looked towards Hinata with utter stun. The tears and the pure, wild terror in the girl's eyes spoke far louder than her words. "H-He killed her, I… Neji and I… we saw." She then buried her face into her knees and started to shake uncontrollably. The next words were barely audible. "She… she's dead… She's dead… She wouldn't move…"

Tsunade felt how blood turned cold in her veins. Her eyes slightly widened, she looked towards Ibiki, who seemed to be having similar emotions.

It took a mighty while before Ibiki spoke. "So… This is it", the man stated so quietly that Hinata wouldn't hear. "We're starting official investigations. On both her and Sasuke's case."

She felt a cold shiver. "What do you mean?"

His face even more serious than usual, he handed her a piece of paper. "Here's the results of Sasuke's blood test."

She glanced at the paper – and her eyes first widened, then flashed with something extremely dark. "These are illegal drugs! If Danzo had kept giving these to someone like Sasuke…" Her eyes narrowed as she fumed inside. "That asshole…!"

"We're going to find Danzo and Orochimaru." Ibiki glanced towards Hinata. "And we're going to find out who brought all that pain on her family as well."

Her eyes darkened significantly. "Make damn sure they'll pay dearly for putting these teenagers through all this."

Ibiki nodded. "I will." He then sighed and turned around. "I've gotta go. They've already paged me five times from the station."

As soon as he'd left, she took a deep breath and started to approach a hysterical Hinata slowly.

Sometimes she really hated her job.

* * *

Iruka was fairly sure that he'd never felt as sick in his life as he did while he was lay in a hospital bed, trying his hardest not to vomit while the newest dosage of chemo traveled through his veins. His thoughts and emotions swayed, swirled and mixed while exhaustion washed over him. He was already falling asleep when the room's door was suddenly opened.

He opened his eyes – and felt a tremor of shock go through him when finding Kakashi stood by the room's doorway. His heart seemed to loose its rhytmn for a couple of seconds.

He wasn't sure which one hurt more – seeing Kakashi's shock over his clearly sick appearance, or seeing how cautious the man was to approach him.

In the end, it took quite a bit of him to create a tiny smile. "Hey." In some other situation he might've snorted. Was that honestly the best he could come up with?

Kakashi licked his lips and scratched his hair before the words finally came. "Hey." Apparently he wasn't the only one at a loss of words.

Neither of them knew what to say. The silence was heavy and awkward, filled with words that were too late to be voiced.

In the end Iruka's lips moved without much of a thought. "Kakashi… I never wanted to abandon you." He glanced towards the man, unable to read the things he found. "You believe me, don't you?" Things weren't _that_ badly wrong, right?

Kakashi's eyes found his, filled with all the same things as they had been that day. "I want to." The man then seemed to try and focus on his papers. "You… aren't officially my patient, and I have a lot of work to do, so…" The man started to turn to leave, although there was clearly something he would've wanted to say.

Kakashi was already by the room's door when he finally found his voice. "I've missed you. Every day."

He could almost feel the words Kakashi was about to speak, but before anything came the man was gone, like a ghost having disappeared to nothingness.

He leaned his head backwards and released a loud, almost desperate groan.

No amount of throwing up would ease the nausea that'd appeared to linger inside him.

-

When Naruto entered the room, he frowned at the troubled look on his foster-father's face. "What's wrong?"

Blinking furiously – as though only just waking up – Iruka looked towards him and created a feeble reassuring expression. "I'm… feeling a little queasy, that's all."

Unconvinced, he nodded, then took a deep breath. He hated it how pale and obviously nauseated these treatment sessions made the brunet. If only there'd been something he could've done… He swallowed thickly and tried to grin. "Let's go home. I bet you're sick of this place already."

When Iruka got up, they both saw it. Several strands of long, chocolate-brown hair had fallen to the man's pillow. Something inside Naruto twisted painfully.

As though sensing the emotions inside him, Iruka looked towards him and tried to smile comfortingly. "Naruto…" The rest never came out.

He'd been putting on a brave front for a long time already. At that moment it finally crackled.

Iruka couldn't do anything but hold him as he broke into proud tears that wouldn't stop, hugging the only father he'd ever known as tightly as he possibly could without bringing pain.

* * *

The following afternoon all of Naruto's worries floated away once more while everyone else but Hinata and Haku – who were absent for one reason or another – enjoyed a session of art-therapy.

As he watched the teens in front of their artworks, he found it nearly impossible to believe that they were in an institution of some sort. For once Gaara's expression was thoughtful, even soft, while the boy painted. Juugo also seemed content while sitting as close to Sasuke as he dared to, both of them absorbed by their paintings. He couldn't understand why such a sight made him feel… jealous, almost.

And there was also whistling.

Amused, he turned his gaze to take a look at Sakura, who was responsible for the sound. "Now what's gotten you into such a good mood?"

She grinned. "I haven't told you, have I?" Her eyes flashed with excitement. "Tsunade's discharging me in two days. I'll still have to work here, but I'll get to go home."

He couldn't even begin to guess what kind of a home the girl would be going to – after all, her own foster-father had been abusing her. She'd have a long road of adjusting ahead of her. But at the moment those things seemed quite far. And that's why he grinned as well. "You know what?" He looked at the others. "This calls for a celebration."

Juugo blinked once, appearing mildly interested. Gaara arched an eyebrow.

Sasuke, on the other hand, scoffed. "You've gotta be kidding me."

He grinned at the Uchiha. "Don't be a spoilsport, Sasuke."

Sasuke made a strange sound. "You're a real dobe sometimes."

It came completely without a warning – the pain, and especially the flash that followed. It came so rapidly that all he could do was yelp.

* * *

/ _Suddenly he saw himself at the age of eight, climbing into an apple tree with a raven-haired boy following. They were already so high up that his head spun – or perhaps that flash was just messing his head._

_The raven's expression was dry, completely un-childlike. "You do understand that he's gonna kill us for this, right?"_

_He grinned radiantly. "Nah, he's only gonna do that if he catches us." He looked over his shoulder towards the boy. "Don't be a spoilsport, Sasuke."_

_Sasuke's lips parted – but before anything came his hold broke, and he was falling fast with a loud scream. Unable to stop himself, he took Sasuke down with him while crashing down. He closed his eyes – and they hit the ground._

_For a couple of moments he didn't even dare to breath. Then, very slowly, he opened his eys – and gave something between a gasp and a yelp when realizing that Sasuke was underneath him, completely motionless. The raven's eyes were closed._

_"Sasuke?" he tried. The raven remained unmoving. Panic squeezed his throat, which was why his voice came out as a squeak. "Sasuke?" There was no response. His heart started to hammer, and his eyes stung as he stroked the other child's cheek in panic, not knowing what else to do anymore. "S-S'uke, c'mon…!"_

_And then, just as he was about to scream with terror, Sasuke's eyes fluttered halfway open. The raven shook his head, giving a somewhat shuddering snort. "You're a real dobe sometimes."_ /

* * *

And then Naruto crashed back into reality – only to realize that he was leaning against Sasuke, who was stiffer than a violin's string, and that his hand was squeezing the boy's wrist tightly. His head _hurt_, so badly that he almost screamed.

"Naruto?" That… wasn't Sasuke's voice. Glancing to side slowly, he found Gaara's frown. "Is… everything okay?"

He blinked furiously, his head still hurting like someone had been hammering it and his heart beating much too fast. "Y-Yeah, yeah. I'm… fine. It's… just a little headache." Suddenly Sasuke's skin was almost burning him. He distanced himself from the boy rapidly, preparing himself for a flight. "I… I need some… air." And with that he was on his way.

On his way out of the room, he dashed past Tsunade. She gave him a confused look. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

He couldn't respond – all he could do was run.

When he made it to the nearest bathroom, he threw up loudly.

* * *

Later that evening, Naruto's head still hurt as he sat in a very familiar park with Sai, Ino, Shikamaru and Kiba. Usually the athmosphere around them was enough to calm anyone, but as of lately – with all the subtle tension between Sai and Ino – things had been far from comfortable. It felt like they'd been waiting helplessly for a bomb to go off.

That evening, however, all tensions were pushed aside as the others listened somewhat disbelievingly while Naruto told about his recent dreams and of the strange flash.

"Do you seriously think it was a memory?" Shikamaru, who was sitting with Ino in his lap, inquired with clear scepticism. "That you were really in the same orphanage with him?"

Kiba frowned. "Why did you block out all that stuff? I don't get it."

He shrugged, feeling irritated by the recently discovered holes in his past. "I don't get it, either. I just…" He shook his head. "I really, really wish I remembered. This is all giving me a headache."

Shikamaru snorted. "Yeah, I bet."

He then allowed his thoughts to move elsewhere. "What about you guys? Anything new?"

Whereas Sai and Ino tensed up completeley and Shikamaru snorted, Kiba laughed out loud. "I broke my record on eating burgers the other day, and got a black eye when asking Karin out yesterday. Do those count?"

Shikamaru smirked. "You actually asked her out? Isn't she in a whole another league?"

Kiba responded with a far from mature expression and gesture.

Shikamaru then took a glance towards his watch and winced. "Oh man, I'm late. Some family-friends are coming over – I'm supposed to be home to greet them." He gave Ino a somewhat tender kiss while pushing her gently from his lap. "I'll call you later, 'k?"

Sai bounced up immediately, starting to leave. "I've… gotta go. I'm starting to work in Tengoku tomorrow, so…"

Aside Naruto, the others may have also noticed Sai's weird expression if Kiba hadn't spoken just then. "I'm also off. Akamaru's been sick or something lately – I want to check up on him."

Once the others had left after words of parting, Naruto's attention shifted to Ino, who was watching Sai's distancing back with a gloomy expression on her face. "You miss him, don't you?" he suggested.

The girl sighed a little. "You have no idea." She winced, more to herself than him. "Sometimes… I just wish it wasn't too late, now."

"It isn't." He glanced towards the direction to which Sai had disappeared. "Why don't you just tell him how you feel, how much you miss him?"

"Because it's too fucking late already, okay?!" Realizing her tone, she took a deep breath, then spoke again. "It's… too late."

He frowned. "Why?"

He could've sworn Ino shivered and her eyes shimmered with unshed tears while she lifted her gaze towards the stars. It took the longest moment before she spoke, pulling her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. "Do you… think it'll ever get easy?"

He smiled wryly, also lifting his gaze. "No." He shrugged somewhat helplessly. "But I guess it's gotta start getting _easier_ at some point, right?"

Ino didn't respond. Neither noticed the silence that crashed down on them.

* * *

The next day Naruto was relieved to discover that no more memories appeared – although, much to his regret and sadness, it was mostly because Sasuke seemed to be avoiding him. There was, however, something else disturbing him.

For the third time already, Haku skipped art-therapy. And when he heard Tsunade admit to Shizune that she was worried, he realized that he needed to do something.

Haku called him into his room after two knocks. He entered with some inexplainable worry – and blinked when finding Haku sitting on his bed with a book in his lap.

He didn't know what he'd been expecting, but this certainly wasn't it.

Haku seemed between surprised and startled when seeing him. "Naruto?"

Once again, he felt very stupid all of a sudden. "You… skipped art-therapy again today." He observed the other boy, who seemed paler than usual. It was obvious the raven hadn't been sleeping well lately. "What's wrong?"

Haku shook his head, trying to smile. "I was just a little tired, that's all. You shouldn't worry – Tsunade already talked to me."

He frowned, still not fully convinced. "So… you're okay?"

Haku nodded, seeming so calm that it was impossible not to believe. "Yes, I'm alright. I'm sorry about worrying you."

He wasn't entirely sure how to react, and before he had to make his decision there was a knock before the door was pushed open. In a moment Hinata peered in with a bright blush. "T-Tsunade sent m-me to look f-for you", the girl explained. "S-She has a task for you."

He glanced towards Haku once more. Something he couldn't name squirmed in his stomach. "Look…" There was something he would've desperately wanted to say, but he couldn't find the words.

Haku's tiny smile seemed genuine enough. "I'm okay – you don't need to worry about me."

He nodded. "I'll see you later, okay?" He then focused on Hinata. "I… guess we should go."

-

Once he was left alone, Haku moved the book he hadn't been able to focus on. Underneath it lay a tiny piece of glass.

Earlier that day, he'd dropped a glass during lunch. The shard he'd managed to snatch wasn't big, but it was well sharp enough.

His eyes turned even darker than usual.

* * *

In a rather abandoned mansion that'd already seen its best days, Danzo fought his hardest not to tremble when he stepped into the building's biggest room. "You… wanted to talk to me."

On the other side of the room another man – who's raven hair was placed to a neat plait – nodded while pouring himself some wine. "Yes." It sounded like a snake's hiss. The man turned around, watching him with reptile's eyes that made him tremble. "I recently heard that you… made quite a mistake. You got yourself fired, and the police is after you."

He swallowed thickly, realizing just how huge of a trouble he was in. _Shit…_ "It's… It's not too late yet. I can… I can still sneak my way back in, you see? I can…"

The other man's violent gesture made him shut up in an instant. "I already sent someone else to take care of your assignment." Those dangerous eyes locked with his. "I have no use for you anymore."

Danzo's eyes widened.

In some moments a bloodcurdling scream erupted from the house, sneaking down the empty street.

* * *

Following Hinata, Naruto ended up into Tengoku's biggest common space he'd never been in before. He found his heart skipping a beat or two once he noticed that Sasuke was also there, sitting in a huge armchair by the window and looking out with slightly glazed eyes.

Something stern settled into him.

This most likely wasn't what Tsunade had asked him here for, but this was also definitely something he needed to take care of, fast.

He took a deep breath, then looked towards Hinata. "There's… something I need to do. I'll see you later, 'k?"

The girl blushed radiantly before starting to all but dash away. "S-See you." And so she was already gone.

Focusing on Sasuke once more, he steeled himself and started to approach. It hurt him how the boy stiffened when seeing him – something had obviously been broken by that stupid flash and his reaction to it. He sighed heavily. "Look… I'm sorry, about yesterday. But…" He decided that he'd have to be perfectly honest if he ever wanted any trust. He swallowed laboriously. "Lately, I've been… having these flashes – memories, I guess. They're… about you, mostly, and they scare me, because I have no idea what they mean. Right now, I'm just… I'm confused, okay? And… And…" His words got tangled for a while. "I need time, to figure things out. But I'm not leaving – I'd _never_ abandon you. I just… I really need you to understand."

Sasuke looked at him for the longest time, quite understandably confused by his rambling. Then, very slowly, the boy relaxed. "It's… okay, that you need time." The raven looked away. "I… need time, too."

He couldn't help the tiny smile that rose to his lips.

One can only wonder what might've happened if steps hadn't interrupted them just then. In a moment a familiar voice spoke. "I guess I came to the right place."

Turning his gaze, he found Sai. A huge grin appeared to his face. "Hey! I was wondering when you'd show up." He then noticed a young man with gray hair and eyeglasses entering the room. A frown appeared to his forehead. "Who's that?" From the corner of his eye, he noticed how Sasuke's eyes flashed almost violently when also spotting the new face. Before he could stop the boy the raven got up much too fast and disappeared in a flash.

The stranger, obviously noticing his stare, looked towards him, then approached with a smile. "Hello. I think we haven't met before." A hand was outstretched. "My name is Kabuto Yakushi. I'm taking over Danzo's position as a doctor."

Naruto blinked with surprise at this. Wasn't Kabuto a bit too young to be a doctor? He, however, managed to grin politely while shaking the man's hand – this, although a sensation of threat he couldn't explain swirled inside him. "Hi. I'm Naruto Uzumaki, a trainee."

Kabuto nodded slowly, seeming to observe him. "Nice to meet you, Naruto."

Something dangerous and unnerving Naruto couldn't explain lingered while they looked at each other for a couple of long moments. After that the other man focused on greeting Sai. Naruto, on the other hand, was preoccupied as something that felt like a memory slashed harder than a knife.

* * *

/ _He, at the age he assumed to be around eight or nine, certainly wasn't feeling ecstatic while he sat on a windowsill, watching how the most beautiful day of summer slipped by outside._

_He'd definitely chosen the worst possible day to end up getting grounded – again._

_A knock on the door cut his gloomy thoughts. For the first time that day he grinned as a raven-haired boy entered. "Hey! I thought…" He then trailed off and felt abnormally cold when seeing the bruise on the other boy's face. He gasped loudly. "Sasuke… What happened?!"_

_Sasuke shook his head determinedly, onyx eyes growing hard. "I… don't want to talk about it."_

_  
He shivered a little, fighting the urge to go over and hug his friend – he didn't think the raven would've appreciated such an approach. "Does it hurt?"_

_He could've sworn he saw Sasuke jolt before the boy pulled out something, moving towards him as though it'd been extremely painful. "I brought you something", the boy announced somewhat gruffly. "I know he won't let you eat, so…"_

_He grinned with joy when seeing the offering – a huge piece of the most delicious bread. Then, in a flash, his expression faltered and turned into a solemn one as he realized something. He looked for the raven's eyes, unable to meet them. "But… You'll get into a trouble if he finds out."_

_  
Sasuke shrugged nonchalantly. "Like I'd care."_

_Another smile found its way to his face. "Thanks."_

_Just then they heard steps. He managed to hide the bread just before the room's door was thrown open. Stood by the doorway was a teen with gray hair and eyeglasses. The arrival didn't seem pleased. "Sasuke, you know well that it's not allowed to visit those who are suffering their punishment."_

_  
Sasuke's eyes flashed venomously. "What the hell do you want, Kabuto?"_

_Kabuto's expression remained stony. "Orochimaru-sama wants to see you. Now."_ /

* * *

Naruto shuddered back into present when feeling a hand on his shoulder. He met Sai's slightly worried expression. "What's wrong?"

Still dazed, he barely managed to react. "I… just zoned out a bit."

His eyes shifted to Kabuto, who was looking at him with what appeared to be curiosity. He shivered and folded his arms to his chest.

Had Kabuto… been in that oprhanage, or something, too? What did these flashes mean?

Just then a new set of steps entered the room. He was relieved to face Tsunade – maybe she'd distract him from these chaotic thoughts. She looked towards him. "I figured you'd be the right person to introduce Tengoku to these new arrivals." She then nodded towards the two others, and frowned. "There was supposed to be three of you."

The much too familiar voice that appeared a second later was almost enough to push Naruto off his feet. "Sorry I'm late. I had… some difficulties with getting here."

He turned his gaze slowly, reluctantly. The discovery was exactly the one he'd feared. Sai also stiffened and took a step closer to him when noticing the newest arrival.

Stood only steps away was none other than Neji Hyuuga.

* * *

TBC, un.

* * *

A/N: Oooh boy… (groans) Like there hadn't been enough mess already; now, things are gonna get messier than ever. (winces)

I really should get going – there's a ton of stuff I'm supposed to get finished tonight, so I'm tuning out. PLEASE, do leave a review before you tune out as well – ya guys gotta know by now how much your opinion means to me! (casts a somewhat pleading glance – and offers special treats)

IN THE NEXT ONE: The mess only gets thicker as shades of jealousy come to play. Shadows of past are also darker and heavier than ever before. Everyone's in a shock when an unexpected tragedy hits Tengoku.

Until next time, folks – I really, really hope I'll see lots of familiar faces then!

Be good!

* * *

**ZakuKura**: You've actually boomarked this?! (blushes) My gosh, how happy that makes me. (hugs)

Colossal thank yous for the review!

I really hope you'll enjoy the next one just as much.

-

**kai**: And Sasuke finally found his voice! (grins from ear to ear) Thank goodness; he's been wandering around in silence far too long.

Poor Naruto, ne? All that stuff he has to try and deal with. (winces) Let's hope he'll get some relief in the end! (Those dreams – memories – of his… 'Wonder what they're about?)

(hisses at Danzo) That (INSERT THE CRUELEST POSSIBLE INSULTS HERE) deserves a slow, painful punishment for what's he done, ne? He won't be able to hide forever. (reveals fangs)

Gigantic thank yous for the review!

C ya next time, I hope.


	6. The Crackling Melody

A/N: GAH, it almost took me longer than it should've, but I'm baaaaaack! (grins)

First things, of course, first. GOSH – thank you from the bottom of my heart for all those absolutely amazing reviews! So many of them… (gasps, blushes and beams) You've made me happier than you could ever imagine. THANK YOU! Heh, as per usual with my fics, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because it's getting really late around here, let's rock! I REALLY hope ya'll enjoy ride. (gulps a little)

* * *

CHAPTER 6: The Crackling Melody

* * *

Naruto couldn't believe his eyes as he stared at Neji, who was looking directly towards him with unreadable eyes. His heart pounded, but not for the same reasons it once had.

Did Neji really have the guts to come here after how they'd finished things up – after they haven't spoken a single word to each other in a month?!

Was this Neji's idea of a joke?

Tengoku had been the one place in which he'd been safe from all the turmoil caused by Neji, where at least one of the things messing with his head had been at bay. And now his last sanctuary had been taken away.

The brunet hesitated a little when taking a step towards him. "Naruto…"

He shook his head, not wanting to hear another word at the moment. There was too much on his mind already; he definitely didn't need whatever Neji had to say. "Just… Just _don't_, okay?" he all but hissed in a voice that wasn't his.

Neji's mouth opened, but this time Tsunade interrupted the boy. She looked at them with a stern expression. "Is something wrong?"

He glanced towards Neji threateningly. If their mess would jeopardize his job…

Fortunately Neji shook his head and folded his arms. "No. We've just… known each other for a long time."

Tsunade quirked her eyebrow, but fortunately seemed to decide that she didn't need to know more. Her eyes turned a shade darker than usual. "I trust you to act civilized while working together in this place."

Both he and Neji nodded stiffly yet obediently, like two small children who had no intension of doing as they'd been told.

Tsunade nodded rather sharply, quite clearly not believing a word. "Good." She glanced sternly towards Neji. "I think it's for the best I give you your introduction tour – there's a certain inhabitant I want you to meet." Her eyes were a little bit softer when she looked at Sai. "As for you… I think I have the right task."

The gang was silent as they made their way out of the room. Once they were out, Neji grabbed Naruto's wrist once more. Blue eyes were uncharacteristically hard when looking at the brunet. "Now what, Neji?" Naruto all but hissed.

"Just…" Neji took a deep breath – this was obviously a huge blow to his pride. "I'm sorry."

Fortunately he didn't get the chance to respond, because just then Tsunade spoke. "Neji, Sai, you two come with me. Naruto, could you give Kabuto a little round?"

He nodded, feeling a flood of relief although the thought of being alone with Kabuto unnerwed him. "Sure."

The two boys glared at each other when following Tsunade.

Just as they'd left, Naruto felt another presence. He turned his head with a frown – and gulped thickly for some reason when seeing Sasuke standing in the sidelines. The raven's eyes were darker than ever before. He frowned. "Sasuke?"

Without saying a word the boy turned around and disappeared.

At that moment knowing that he'd need to do something – although he wasn't sure what needed to be fixed – he glanced apologetically towards Kabuto. "Look…"

The gray-haired waved a hand with a much too well-trained looking pleasant smile. "Go. I can as well take a look around by myself."  
Excited about the idea of getting away from Kabuto, he nodded a bit too eagerly and all but dashed away.

-

As soon as Naruto had left Kabuto pulled out his cell-phone.

* * *

Neji didn't know what to expect when Tsunade led him towards a room's door. "Usually we don't give trainees their own patients, but right now… I think there's one inhabitant who might have a great use of someone of his own age spending a lot of time with them."

He quirked an eyebrow.

_Why do I have a bad feeling about this…?_

Tsunade pushed the door open with an expression that didn't promise anything good at all. "Neji, meet Gaara."

He took a somewhat cautious step forward into the small room, and saw a boy of his age just emerging from a shower, wearing only a pair of loose pants. The boy finally noticed him while toweling his red hair.

He didn't think either one of them had ever felt as uncomfortable.

Gaara's eyes were filled with boredom and irritation as the redhead sat down, leaned back in his chair and glared at him.

He fought the urge to groan. "I'm sure we'll have a fantastic time together."

-

Once they kept walking on, Sai looked towards Tsunade. "What about me?"

There was a somewhat sneaky look on her face when she looked at him. "I wouldn't want to put together a male employee and a female inhabitant, but since she's already going to turn into a employee in a couple of days…" She then noticed someone. "Sakura, there you are! This is Sai – he'll be your… supervisor for a while."

Into view stepped a pinkette who didn't seem entirely sure if she was happy to see him or extremely irritated about being babysitted. "Hey."

He nodded, never having been a social butterfly. Suddenly he wondered why he'd ever been an idiot enough to accept this job.

Tsunade, on the other hand, appeared satisfied – or perhaps she just had other things to do – for she turned and left, dumping them into an uncomfortable silence.

Deciding that he couldn't play mute forever, he forced out some words. "So… you're not going to be a patient much longer?"

Even with the best of efforts, he couldn't tell if Sakura was insulted or enjoyed when seeing an easy target in him. "Inhabitant, Sai – call us inhabitants unless you want to get beaten up." She spotted a book forgotten to a nearby table, and started to flip through it. "And yes, I'm going home soon."

He dared to relax ever so slightly. "Your parents must be happy."

Something dark, almost dangerous, flashed by the girl's face. "I guess they would be, if they were still alive."

He'd never wanted to swallow his tongue as badly. "I'm sorry." He then came to think of something. "Then… Where are you going when you're discharged?"

Sakura shrugged, not looking his way. "I'm going to live with TenTen and her family until social services find something else." Sensing his question, she went on. "She's my ex-girlfriend."

He blinked once, twice. "Oh", was what he mustered in the end. So she was…?

"I'm bi", Sakura explained, obviously very much comfortable with the fact. Good heavens, did she seem to love seeing his scarcely open surprise…! She shook her head, once again focusing on the book she'd found. "Damn, you guys are amusing sometimes."

All of a sudden he knew one thing clearly.

This girl… was definitely going to be something _different_.

* * *

Naruto's steps were determined while he made his way through Tengoku's hallways, his mind firmly set on a certain task.

All of a sudden his steps faltered a little and he had to lean against the wall with a loud hiss when a yet another flash filled his whole mind.

* * *

/ _His heart pounded, almost like trying to make its way right through his chest, as he watched how a ten-year-old Sasuke lifted his head although it visibly took all the child's energy. The face he met was no longer the one he'd known – half of his best friend's face was burned, and the child was trembling pitiably, visibly barely clinging to consciousness._

_Tears flowed down his cheeks, hot and heavy, while he trembled where he stood. The smell of burning wood and flesh – or perhaps something else – made him want to scream and throw up. "Sasuke…!"_

_And then the raven fell down to his knees, panting and crying a little, most likely from unbearable pain. "Just… fucking go", the boy growled. "He'll… come back, so… go. Go, or I'll never forgive you." And Sasuke's eyes told he meant it._

_And that's when he did something he'd never forgive himself for deep in his heart – something he didn't think he'd be able to live with. He spun around, and started to run._

_He was a child. No one should've expected him to be able to handle something like this – but he did, and that's why he did throw up when he finally fell to the ground, screaming out loud and crying bitter tears._

_"SASUKE!"_

_He didn't know anything since._

_All he knew was that he screamed as the black came crashing down on him._ /

* * *

He frowned with a shiver, not understanding a thing.

"Are you okay?" Sasuke's voice startled him so badly that he yelped.

Lifting his gaze, he realized that the raven was sitting in a nearby corner, suddenly so small that it would've been impossible to notice him if he hadn't spoken. It didn't take a genius to realize that something was wrong.

He frowned, suddenly not understanding a thing. What had he done wrong – why was he getting shunned out? "Sasuke?" And then an idea struck him with cold shivers. "This… is about Neji, right?"

Sasuke wouldn't look at him. The boy's eyes seemed slightly distant, as though he'd slipped away from the time they should've been in. "I understand. So… Don't worry."

He shook his head, suddenly so determined once more that it almost scared him. "No", he countered in a surprisingly soft tone. "You _don't_ understand, Sasuke." He took a deep breath, composing himself while walking towards the other boy, eventually kneeled beside the raven although he knew he was risking his health. "Neji and I… We're over, okay? But with you… I'd like to think it's just beginning again." Because after the time he'd spent with Neji, he understood one thing clearly.

He'd never cared about anyone like this – it scared him to death, but he'd never been able to deny facts too long. And although he knew it was wrong in several ways in their situation, he wasn't about to let Sasuke slip out of his reach again. He didn't think be able to handle even the thought.

Bracing himself, he sighed a little and shifted himself so that he could hold Sasuke the best as he dared to, which wasn't tightly at the moment. He looked directly to the Uchiha's eyes. "Look… We both have our pasts, and… I know we even have some past together." He could've sworn he saw a flash of surprise, even near-shock, at this. "But… I want you into my future, too. So, I'm not about to abandon you, okay?" _Not ever again._

Sasuke half-glared at him for a long time, until the expression fell to give room for something he couldn't read. The boy looked away with a barely audible snort. "You'd be the first."

He grinned, although his heart almost broke at those words. "Then so be it."

Sasuke snorted. And that's when he saw it – the tiniest flicker of a smile that lasted about a millisecond. It brought the strangest light to the Uchiha's pale face, and suddenly he felt like he'd been looking at a whole another person. "Hn."

His grin from before turned into a full smile.

A yet another flood of memories appeared, but this time it didn't hurt, didn't even scare him all that much when he just let the flashes come without a fight. It felt like this was all meant to be; everything in the past and present felt right for those fleeting moments.

/ _He loved the feeling he got when he and Sasuke jumped through the air, eventually landing to an enormous mass of snow. In the Uchiha's presence, the whiteness wasn't cold and threatening._ /

/ _He worked his hardest to ease Sasuke's pain when the barely consciouss boy kept tossing and turning in the grips of a sky-high fever._ /

/ _He was almost sure he screamed when watching Sasuke get punched when the Uchiha tried to defend him. Somehow, he knew it was the last time the raven let himself get beaten up._ /

/ _He didn't know what the tears were for, but they poured down as he and Sasuke stood in the rain, looking at each other with stern expressions that were far from those of children._ /

/ _The sensation was something his mind could barely understand when for a tiny moment, their lips met – warm, soft, salty and filled with life, fumbling because neither of them knew what to do. "I'm so sorry." And then there was something thick, moist and warm._ /

Maybe it was the memories messing with his head or something much more real – something even stronger – but he found his self-restraints breaking. And before he knew it he'd wrapped his arms around Sasuke and pulled the boy close.

As expectd, at first the Uchiha stiffened completely under his hold. But then, very slowly, tensed up muscles relaxed one by one – like some voice had whispered to the Uchiha soothing words he couldn't hear. He could've sworn raven's hold on him tightened, but it might've been a trick of his imagination.

And so they sat, so close that it was impossible to tell apart their warmths, both surrearly content.

-

What Naruto failed to notice from his emotional turmoil, was the events unfolding around him.

Sasuke's head turned slightly when he felt like someone was watching him – and onyx clashed with pale eyes. The silence between him and Neji was thicker and heavier than a wall of bricks, made some chills run through him.

Whereas Neji's eyes narrowed, he quirked a questioning eyebrow that mocked everything swirling inside the brunet.

Neji's eyes flashed, and for a moment he was almost sure the brunet would attack him. In the end, however, the boy simply turned around sharply and walked away without making another sound.

He shuddered a little with emotions he'd never experienced before, feeling cold and incredibly hot at the same time.

Everything was so very confusing all of a sudden.

-  
Naruto had no idea how long they'd been sitting there when steps suddenly approached the room. They managed to part and turn just before Tsunade appeared to the room's doorway. The look on her face immediately made his chest clench painfully. Before he or Tsunade got the chance to stop it, Sasuke had sneaked out of the room.

He swallowed thickly and got up, looking at the woman's face to find any kind of a sign. "What's wrong?"

She sighed heavily, and her shoulders slumped in apparent defeat. Something he'd never seen in them before filled her eyes. "It's… about Haku."

Even before she continued, he already knew the truth so clearly that his blood turned into ice. His eyes widened.

* * *

_Nine Days Later_

* * *

Naruto had always hated funerals. But this one… was a particularly sombre affair.

Burying a teenager – a child. What could've been sadder than that?

Naruto knew he hadn't actually known Haku for a long time, but nonetheless his eyes stung while he watched the ceremony with tightly balled fists.

Perhaps he shouldn't have been surprised – Haku had had the habit of making an impact on every person he met. That was also the boy's greatest curse; he'd been much too kind and gentle to last long in the cruel world.

He emitted a tiny, choked sound without meaning to, and his eyes narrowed a little.

He… was the last person who'd talked to Haku when the boy was still alive, and he'd failed to help. He could've made all the difference – if he'd just said the right words…

He shook his head, trying to force those thoughts away.

There… was nothing he could do now, was there?

He glanced towards Tsunade, who was sitting right beside him, and she looked back. During the three seconds their eyes met he understood one thing clearly.

It looked like they were both harboring the same guilt.

All of a sudden he felt some chills, and turned his gaze. He blinked twice when seeing a rather tall man with black hair and eyes standing at the very back of the chapel, watching the ceremony with folded arms and eyes that flickered with tens of nearly showing emotions.

He frowned. Why wouldn't that man walk up to the rest of them if he'd cared about Haku that much? Who was he even?

And then, as suddenly as he'd noticed the man, the stranger turned and walked out of the building without looking back. Although the door's sound was barely audible when the man went, it was filled with so much anger and frustration that it chilled him.

Was there someone outside Tengoku who missed Haku, who cared? The thought was comforting.

He turned back around once more when there were sounds nearby the altar, and discovered that Shizune had just brought something out for a display. It was Haku's final painting – a beautiful, snowy landscape in the middle of which a careful eye was able to see two dark figures, a child and an adult, holding hands.

He never noticed how he started to shake while two tears rolled.

* * *

That day there was no art-therapy; although the inhabitants hadn't been able to participate to Haku's memorial service and burial, they were all more or less mourning in their own way. Tengoku felt empty, almost lifeless. In some twisted way, it was amusing how the absence of someone as silent as Haku could take away a huge part of the building's soul.

But then again, was that any wonder? In the middle of all aggressions and emotional turmoils Haku had been a balancing force, someone everyone had liked. Of course losing him hurt.

Sasuke was drifting deep in thought while his fingers ghosted iddly on the keys of a piano, occasionally pressing hard enough to make a sound. So deep in thought he was, that the arrival managed to catch him off guard when speaking. "I knew it was you playing when I heard the music." Juugo seemed slightly embarrassed when their gazes met. "I… didn't mean to intrude. I just like to listen."

He shook his head, feeling close to smiling for some reason. "It's okay."

Juugo took a somewhat hesitant step closer. "Can I sit and listen?"

He nodded, although he wasn't entirely sure how to feel about the company. He didn't really enjoy playing when there was someone listening, but since he'd learned to be comfortable with playing with Naruto…

In the end he simply allowed his fingers to move, and in a matter of moments he'd forgotten that Juugo was even there. All that existed to him was the music.

When he finished the song and remembered that he had company, he looked towards Juugo. The boy's eyes were softer than he'd ever seen them. "That was the 3rd Rachimanoff concerto."

He was genuinely surprised by this. "I didn't know you're into music."

Did Juugo just… smile a little? "There's a lot people don't know about me."

Just then they both heard someone enter the room. He turned his gaze, and for some reason the oddly dark expression on Naruto's face made him feel like he'd been caught cheating or something. "Oh…", was all the blond managed in an extremely tight tone.

Juugo, clearly feeling out of place, got up and started to march towards the room's door. "I… have to get going." Anyone could feel the coldness when the boy passed by Naruto.

Once the taller teen had left, Sasuke arched a questioning eyebrow at the blond.

_What the hell's going on?_

Instead of responding Naruto walked closer, and took a seat beside him just like the boy always did. Blue eyes were once again sparkling with excitement. "I heard that song you just played – it was amazing!"

He shrugged, pressing a couple of keys. "It was just… something I learned a long time ago." He frowned a little when seeing a flash of something strange on Naruto's face. "What's wrong?" he inquired.

To his surprise, Naruto chuckled. "I just… remembered that you used to sing, when we couldn't sleep." The boy looked at him with amusement-filled eyes. "It was 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star', right?"

He blinked once, then snorted. So that, Naruto remembered? "You've gotta be kidding me."

Naruto shrugged. "I think it was cute. I mean… We were, like, ten or something, right?" The boy focused on the piano's keys, obviously to avoid looking at him. "I… remember that I loved hearing you sing."

He couldn't keep his eyes from softening a little as he looked at the boy. Something warm filled him. So Naruto remembered something – it was a beginning. "Hn."

Finally Naruto lifted his gaze to look at him, not quite able to say whatever there was on his mind. Something he couldn't name drifted between them, and he forgot to pull his hand away when the blond took it, most likely without noticing.

"I'm starting to _remember_, you know? Now that I'm not fighting it anymore." There was a small grin on the blond's face. "It'll take some time, but I will do it. Believe it."

He might've laughed at that, if such had been a part of his repertoire.

How many times he'd heard that before…

His mouth opened, but before he ever got the chance to say a word another voice spoke. "So here you are." Neji's eyes carried something cold and hard when the boy looked at them, finally focusing on Naruto. "Aren't you supposed to be on your way home by now? Tsunade doesn't approve spending time with the patients outside working hours."  
Sasuke's eyes narrowed, and Naruto didn't seem much more pleased. "I was already leaving", the blond all but hissed, then turned towards him. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He nodded, not feeling like talking in front of Neji.

As soon as Naruto had left, the brunet walked up to him, eyes filled with threat. "Now listen to me carefully", the boy growled through tightly grit teeth. "Naruto's been through a lot lately – the last thing he needs is having to deal with your issues as well. So leave him alone, understood?"

Once again his eyes narrowed. His fists balled, itching to be used.

Neji nodded as though he'd spoken. "I'm glad we understand each other." With a one last threatening look the brunet turned around and started to march away. "I'm sure we won't have to go through this conversation again."

Watching Neji walk away, he took several deep breaths under the fire-hot burning that bubbled everywhere underneath his skin. His teeth screeched as he grit them.

It was a long time from when he'd wanted to punch someone as badly.

* * *

The evening was blissfully calm while Naruto lay prone on the floor of Ino's room, playing with the girl's pet-cat while she lay on her bed with Shikamaru toying with her hair. None of them was in the mood for a lot of talking, so they accepted the silence with contentment.

"Pagan really likes you, you know? Maybe you should take that demon feline home with you – she's been doing nothing but biting, scratching and hissing at me all day", Ino groaned, then slapped Shikamaru's hand half-playfully. "And you, stop playing with my hair or I'll shave all of it off."

The brunet snorted, but obeyed anyhow. "Like you ever would."

She stuck her tongue out at him, then gave his still lingering hand a teasing kiss. "Hmph." She then frowned. "Where's Kiba, anyway? I thought he was supposed to come over, too."

A wide grin appeared to Naruto's face, some of the weight of that day disappearing. "Believe it or not, guys, but he's out on a date – with Karin." He pulled out his cell-phone and threw it to Shikamaru, who – despite his shock – took a skillfull catch. "He sent me a picture to prove it."

Shikamaru opened the picture, which he knew to represent Kiba with Karin who looked ready to kill, and snorted with a smirk. "The Dogboy's never gonna make it through this alive."

Ino chuckled, shaking her head. "I can't believe he actually did it."

Shikamaru threw his cell-phone back to him, then frowned, apparently realizing something. "So Sai didn't show up again." The boy seemed thoughtfull. "Is that guy avoiding us or something?"

Naruto felt himself tensing up, but it was nothing compared to the much too clearly apparent reaction Ino's body gave. The girl stiffened completely, blue eyes growing wide.

Shikamaru could be quite oblivious when it came to certain things. He, however, had never been an idiot. A deep frown appeared when the brunet felt each and every single one of Ino's tensed up muscles. It took a deep breath before the boy dared to try talking. "Ino, tell me. What's going on between you and Sai?"

At this point, Naruto decided that it was high time he left. He got up so fast that Pagan jumped back and hissed with disapproval. "I've… gotta go home. I'll see you guys later." He doubted the two paid barely any attention to his departure.

-

Once they were left alone, Shikamaru spoke once more in a gloomy voice that wasn't quite like his. "Ino, tell me."

The blonde grit her teeth, clearly gathering strength. When she spoke, her voice was so tight it shook. "This has nothing to do with Sai, okay?" She turned to him, and met his gaze with eyes he'd never seen before. "Look… The thing is…" She licked her lips and didn't dare to look at him anymore. "I'm pregnant."

* * *

When Naruto came home some time later, he frowned when noticing Kakashi emerging from the house.

What was the doctor doing visiting them?

Hearing his steps, the gray-haired looked towards him and nodded, appearing somewhat embarrassed. "Hey, Naruto."

He blinked, still confused. "Hey. Is something wrong with Iruka?" Kakashi wasn't his foster father's usual doctor, but…

Kakashi's shake of head eased the tension inside him. "No, I just… brought him home from the chemo when he fell asleep." The man glanced towards the door, as though wanting to go back. "I think he's still sleeping."

In some other occasion he might've pointed out that Iruka's chemo had ended hours ago, but judging by the way Kakashi's shoulders were slumped the man already had far more than enough on his mind. Plus, for some reason he had a feeling that the doctor might be someone his foster father needed. That's why he simply nodded with a smile. "Thanks." He then waved a hand, making his way towards the door. "I guess I'll be seeing you around."

Just before he was inside, Kakashi spoke once more. "He's getting better, you know?" Once turning, he discovered that there was a somewhat soft expression on the man's face. "I know it doesn't look like it, but… The treatment's working. Now he'll just have to keep fighting."

When he was finally able to react he nodded, unable to say a word, then entered the house. He winced a little when recognizing the scent of chamomile tea as soon as the door was closed; Iruka only drank that stuff when feeling particularly nauseous.

Instead of a bed he found his foster father from the kitchen, sitting at the table and staring somewhat absentmindedly at his drink as though it'd been poison. He couldn't help noticing that another small part of the man's hair was missing, and the realization hurt. "So… Kakashi left?" the brunet murmured in a soft tone.

He nodded, trying to read the man's moods and failing. "Yeah." At first he thought he should say something more, but came to a realization that it wasn't words the brunet needed.

Without saying a thing he also took some tea although he hated it, and sat right next to Iruka. A comfortable silence fell as they sat there, both trying to free themselves from too many thoughts.

* * *

/ _Sasuke could barely see from the thick smoke lingering everywhere around him, filling his eyes, lungs and nose. It seemed to fill all of him, actually, making it almost impossible to keep breathing._

_Just before he would've faded away completely a pair of arms wrapped around him, pulling him back to awareness. And he met a pair of eyes exactly like his. "Sasuke, I need you to stay awake, okay? You need to stay awake."_

_  
Scared beyond all reason, he clung to the other with all his might, shaking like a leaf. "Brother, the house…!" he whimpered._

_"I know, Sasuke." The voice was soft and soothing. "I know. But we're going to get out of here. Just hang on for a little bit longer, and everything will work out." _

_And then everything started to fade away into the black. He heard a loud, brief boom, and suddenly sticky, warm moisture was everywhere. The hold that'd kept him connected to the world disappeared, leaving him cold and bare._

_He screamed – roared – as the black swam in and engulfed him when he fell. "ITACHI!"_ /

* * *

Sasuke woke up with a yelp – to meet the same eyes that'd haunted him in that dream. He could've sworn his eyes widened slightly, and his heartbeat shot up until he was panting. "Brother…?"

And then black turned into blue, and he met Naruto's all but horrified gaze. The blond was holding him tightly – far too tightly to his liking – as though afraid that he might slip away. The hold disappeared when the boy saw his discomfort. "Tsunade… sent me to come and get you, when you wouldn't show up for breakfast." The blond frowned. "Sasuke, what was that dream about? You were screaming."

He couldn't look at Naruto anymore, couldn't even think. His panting didn't subside, but at least he was calming down slowly. "It… It was my brother… I though he was visiting me again." He rubbed his face with one hand, utterly frustrated. He was feeling much too hot at first, then unbearably cold, and felt sweat all over his clothes. "I can't fucking think. I can't…" He trailed off, his tongue growing too thick and clumsy.

He heard Naruto talking, but couldn't focus on the words. And then there was Tsunade's voice. "Sasuke, I'm going to give you something that will make you feel better, alright? I'm not going to hurt you – just relax."

The needle pierced his skin before he managed to react, and he let out a growl of anger and frustration. And then his mind turned into a mush.

-

Naruto's heart hammered with startle as he watched how Sasuke relaxed ever so slightly, and seemed to drift into something that looked like sleep. He looked at Tsunade with wide eyes. "What… What happened to him?"

She looked back with a grim expression. "Those… are withdrawal symptoms." She grit her teeth. "I… guess they were bound to appear, with all the stuff those bastards have been giving him for years."

He swallowed thickly, glancing towards Sasuke. The raven didn't seem calm even in his sleep. "He talked about his brother. He was having nightmares of him." He frowned. "I… think he even thought his brother was here – I guess he's been visiting a lot."

The look on Tsunade's face was a clear warning. She shivered. "Naruto… Itachi's been dead for several years. There's no way he could've ever visited Sasuke."

* * *

During her life Hinata had known a lot of fear. But not often had she faced something quite like the emotions running through her when Neji entered her room that day.

Her eyes widened, and she took a step backwards. "W-What are y-you doing h-here?"

Her cousin's pale eyes turned dark, almost threatening. "The reason I came to Tengoku is because I need to talk to you about those damn paintings you've been making." The boy took a deep breath. "And about Hanabi."

* * *

Several hours later, Sasuke recognized the barely traceable smell long before the person was stood in his room – the years in the same house with that reek had implanted it to the depths of his mind and memory.

He turned his head sharply, and felt his eyes narrow when spotting Kabuto stood by the doorway. "What the hell do you want?" he hissed.

Kabuto stepped forth with an unreadable expression and closed the door softly. "So the rumors had it right… You do speak." The older male shook his head and clicked his tongue. "You do understand that we can't have it, right?" The gray-haired walked on until they were stood several steps closer than he would've ever liked. "You see… Your voice seems to be making Naruto remember again. The police also seems very interested in talking to you now that you're a witness that should be taken seriously. And that, as you may understand, is a problem."

His eyes narrowed even further. "What the hell are you going to do about it?"

Kabuto's expression had never been as threatening as it was then. "I'm not doing a thing – but I'm expecting you to keep your little mouth shut. Because if you don't… it'll be the end of Naruto – and you'll never see Itachi again."

* * *

TBC

* * *

A/N: So Sasuke's struggling, Kabuto's making his move, and Naruto's finally letting himself actually remember. (shudders) The mess just keeps getting deeper, ne?

Gah, it's very late, I've got a early waking up tomorrow, and I'm getting a headache, so I've gotta start tuning out. But first… PLEASE, do leave a review to let me know your thoughts – you know it'd mean A LOT!

IN THE NEXT ONE: Naruto has several reasons to worry when both Sasuke and Iruka seem to be ailing. The appearance of the police doesn't make matters any less stressfull. Stupid things are said and done when emotions run high.

**ONLY FOUR OR FIVE TO GO!**

Until next time, folks – I really hope ya'll all stay tuned!

Take care!

* * *

**ZakuKura**: Awww – thank you so much! (blushes, and hugs) You sure know how to make me happy.

Colossal thank yous for the review!

I really hope ya'll keep enjoying the ride.

-

**kai**: It keeps getting deeper alright. (groans)

So we've got Orochimaru, Kabuto and even Neji to worry about. (groans again)

BUT, Danzo's gone, and Sakura's finally getting out! (grins)

Overall, there's a lot of progress – but also at least as many problems. Heh, couldn't have said it any better. Let's hope none of them ends up falling into quicksand as they struggle to cope! (gulps)

Monumental thank yous for the review!

I hope I'll be seeing ya next time.


	7. The Falling Shadows

A/N: I'm baaaack! (grins) And, there's a new chapter in my back-pocket.

BUT, first of course… MAN, thank you so much for all those AMAZING reviews you've taken the time to leave! (GLOMPS) You can't even imagine how much they mean to me, so THANK YOU! As per usual, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because I bet you'd like to keep going already… Let's roooooll – I really hope ya'll enjoy this!

* * *

CHAPTER 7: The Falling Shadows

* * *

_Five Days Later_

* * *

Sasuke's eyes opened – so simply that it surprised him – and in a matter of moments they stung as chlorine filled them. He felt a tremor inside when his body ached for oxygen, but he didn't allow himself the pleasure of reaching for the surface just yet.

He felt weightless, flawless, painless. He wasn't willing to let go of such freedom just yet. He wanted to feel good for a little bit longer.

But then it became too much, and he was forced to swim to the surface of the pool. He gasped hungrily when air filled his lungs, and felt a tremor of pleasure. For a while he felt free and calm.

His relaxed state of mind was disturbed when the person who was escorting him to Tengoku's pool section spoke. "Geez, Sasuke – you almost gave me a heart-attack!" Naruto was looking at him with something that could've been amusement or irritation. "I thought I'd have to dive after you."

He wasn't entirely sure how to react. It was humiliating to be in front of the boy in nothing but his swimming trunks, all the scars in his body much too clearly visible. It was also confusing to be around Naruto with all Kabuto's threats ringing in his ears.

He looked down towards the water, shuddering either from the cold water or for the sight of his body. Couldn't the blond at least freaking turn around? "Hn."

There was something that felt like confusion lingering in the air as they remained absolutely still, both sensing that they were at a standstill.

"You've been quiet." Naruto's words caught him so off guard that he shuddered. He discovered that the blond was looking at him with a thougthfull, almost sad expression. "I mean… Quieter, than you were a while back. What's going on?"

He would've wanted to answer – give anything that would've chased away the suspicion – but all he could focus on was the cold striking him numb. "A towel." He didn't realize he'd spoken out loud until the other boy looked towards him. "Give me… my towel, will you?"

Not until then did Naruto seem to notice his most likely bluish lips, aggravated expression and the much too visible trembling. He was fairly sure the boy cussed under his breath. "Geez, Sasuke – you should've told me you're freezing!" It felt far better than it should've when the blond helped him out of the pool, then rubbed him with the towel to warm him up. "You're as cold as a block of ice."  
Those words surprised him. Most people would've commented how thin he was, gasped in horror at the scars all over him, asked him why he was torturing himself with not eating. But Naruto, of course, had never been an average person.

He was almost starting to relax when he noticed that they weren't alone anymore. From behind a corner, Kabuto observed them with eyes that told everything necessary. During those cold moments reality crashed down on him.

"Sasuke, what's wrong?" Naruto was looking at him with confusion and near-fear. "You're shaking even worse than before."

He looked at the blond with frustration, irritation and utter, nerve-wrecking hopelessness. He'd never felt as helpless in his life. He was trapped by silence all over again, and this time the choice hadn't even been his.

It was almost ridiculous how badly he would've wanted to speak out right then.

No matter how much he tried to deny being affected, seeing the disappointment that appeared to Naruto's face hurt. "So… you're not in the mood for talking, huh?"The boy tried to grin, but failed miserably. "lt's okay. Just… You're going to start talking to me again eventually, right?"

He wanted to say 'yes', hoped he could've chased away that insecurity. But at the moment he could only wrap the towel more tightly around him and look away, his eyes stinging a little.

-

Naruto couldn't understand.

Only days ago Sasuke had been talking a little more each day, and now… Now, Sasuke was slipping from his reach again.

It was around then he noticed something on Sasuke's arm that would've gone unnoticed if the raven had been wearing a shirt; narrow, rather short red stripes that seemed to be screaming against the almost white skin. They'd obviously been made by something sharp – and they were much too neat and many to be accidental. The marks weren't deep – only enough to pierce the skin and cause some minor bleeding – but that didn't make them any less alarming. In fact, it only made things wordse. It meant that the cuts were fresh.

He shivered a little, and all of a sudden the need to pull Sasuke close and hold him was almost too much to resist.

What the heck was going on under Tengoku's roof? How much was there in Sasuke that needed to be fixed? What had caused this relapse?

Suddenly he was terrified for the Uchiha – far more so than would've been professional.

"I… I'm here for you, okay?" He had no idea why, but he had a feeling that he needed to say that. He would've said anything, if… He looked towards the raven, but the boy refused to meet his eyes. "I care about you." _More than you know._ "And I want to help you. But I need you to trust me – to talk to me. So, please…" Suddenly he caught himself pleading, and almost swallowed his tongue.

For a few fleeting moments, he saw a storm of emotions flash by Sasuke's haunted eyes while the raven grit his teeth so hard that it must've hurt. For some moments he was sure the Uchiha would start to scream, but in the end the words were smothered, most likely only echoing inside the boy's head. "I'm fine", the raven breathed out barely audibly instead, still refusing to look at him. "Just… cold."

Feeling almost defeated, he restrained a bitter moan of disappointment and nodded instead. "Then let's go and find you some clothes."

-

Naruto didn't even sense him, and Sasuke wouldn't look his way.

With a very satisfied, cruel little smile Kabuto turned around and walked away with light, smooth steps.

Who might've thought; Sasuke Uchiha could be very obedient when you found the right strings to pull.

* * *

Much later that evening, Naruto got some much-needed distraction when escorting Sakura to the girl's new home with Sai.

He'd known Sai for years – the boy had never acted the way he did right then. And he didn't think he'd ever seen Sakura quite as happy and lively as the girl was then. The two of them kept dancing around each other without probably even noticing it.

Despite his own problems, he got a warm feeling when seeing the two of them so happy.

He blinked twice when realizing that they'd already stopped. Sakura gave them a grin. "Okay, you guys can stop shadowing me already, okay? I'll see you tomorrow."

Something strange could be seen on Sai's face. "Yeah… See you."

Without saying a word they watched how Sakura waved, then all but rushed to the door and knocked. Quite soon a girl with brown hair showed up to open. Naruto could actually feel how stiff Sai became beside him when they watched how the girls almost kissed – most likely caught up by some memories – then hugged each other tightly instead before going inside.

He couldn't help it. He chuckled.

Sai gave him a clearly confused look. "What's so funny?"

He shook his head, still grinning. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

Suddenly the light mood from before was gone. For they noticed Ino walking towards them.

Surprisingly enough it was Sai who broke the silence that fell. "I've heard the rumors." All Konoha had, actually. The boy's dark eyes were filled with something that'd never been seen in them before. "It's Shikamaru's, right?"

Ino nodded, obviously not knowing what to say. "I'm keeping it." Judging by the look on her face, even she didn't understand why she wanted to say that.

"So…", Naruto spoke slowly, feeling that he had to say something. "Have you managed to talk to him yet?"

Ino shook her head, appearing pissed off and scared – all of a sudden the usually tough girl was a scared teenager. "He needs… time to think, I guess. Though I don't have a fucking clue what he's thinking about."

Naruto tried to offer a frail smile. "I'm sure he'll come around eventually."

Ino's shoulders slumped while she sighed. "Yeah, I guess…" She then started to walk on. "I've… gotta go."

There was a strange look on Sai's face while the boy moved as well. "I'm going, too." The boy looked towards him. "See you tomorrow."  
He could only nod.

For some reason it felt wrong and painful to him to watch how Sai chose the direction that led him away from both Ino and Sakura.

Suddenly the world felt like a very cold place.

* * *

When coming home, Naruto frowned at how dark and quiet the house was. A cold fist squeezed itself around his heart. "Iruka? Are you home?"

Following his instincts, he made his way to Iruka's bedroom and knocked. "_There's no need to knock, Naruto._"

He grinned somewhat cheekily when opening the door and entering. "I didn't know if Kakashi was here or not." Because the doctor had visited a lot lately.

Gosh, how good it felt to see the healthy blush that flashed on Iruka's cheeks for a moment! The normality was, however, ruined by a wrenching coughing fit. "I… was just… reading", the man barely managed. "Or… trying to." Finally managing to catch his breath, the brunet went on, appearing… scared almost, although the man tried to hide it. "I just… can't keep my eyes open."

Once again he felt so helpless that it was hard to restrain a whimper, and there was a painful tug in his stomach. If only…

And suddenly he came up with one thing he could do. It was childish and pathetic, but he wanted to try anyhow.

Walking slowly, as though fearing that he'd startle Iruka somehow, he walked up to the man's bed and sneaked in, fitting scarily well next to the much too thin man. With a somewhat faked grin, he grabbed the book the brunet had been trying to read. "Then why don't I read a bit for you?" Meeting a surprised look, he shrugged. "What? I think it's a good book, too."

Seeing Iruka smile made him feel warmer than he had all day.

And so he started to read, and couldn't bring himself to stop even when he noticed that the man was already fast asleep.

* * *

_Four Days Later_

* * *

That rather late afternoon, Tsunade decided that it was time to start joined therapy-sessions again. The mood was tense at first as the teenagers gathered into a huge room, and saw that a particular spot was empty.

Haku had never been a loud person, but nonetheless something was missing without him.

But it looked like he wasn't the only one amiss, as they soon noticed. "Where's Hinata?" Sakura beat Neji to inquiring.

Something strange flashed on Tsunade's face. "There was… something she needed to take care of." A careful observer could see Neji shudder at those words. Tsunade then clapped her hands together, earning everyone's attention. "But now… Today we'll try something very different. I'm going to play some music, and in the meantime I want you to let your thoughts drift. When the song ends, we'll talk about the emotions it aroused."

And then the music – a lullaby, Naruto discovered with some confusion – started, making its way through the huge room like a gentle breeze or a whisper. Without a warning his mind indeed did start to drift, and the memories jumped on him.

* * *

/ _He, at the age of nine, could do nothing but watch as Sasuke winced and emitted something close to a moan. The little bit of moonlight sneaking in through the room's window revealed much too clearly all the patched up injuries on the boy who'd just been discharged from the hospital._

_He swallowed thickly, feeling quite close to tears. "Your injuries hurt, don't they?" he asked quietly with childish innocence. He gulped again. __"I… I don't understand. __Why would Orochimaru do that to you?_

_Sasuke shot something close to a glare towards him. "Go away, Naruto", the boy rasped out._

_But leaving wasn't something he was planning on doing. Instead he moved slowly, and eventually lay himself down beside Sasuke. He didn't dare to touch – who knew how many painful wounds there were – and hoped dearly that his presence was enough. And then he started humming a melody he didn't remember hearing ever before._

_Quite slowly, Sasuke drifted into a somewhat untroubled, much needed sleep._

-

_And then Naruto heard the same melody again, this time hummed by someone else. His eyes flew open. "…'ke?"_

_There was movement around him. "Hey, are you awake?" The male-voice was unfamiliar. Turning his still blurry gaze, he found a man with brown hair and warm eyes of the same color. The brunet smiled slightly. "Were you dreaming of someone?"_

_He soon realized that he couldn't remember, couldn't make his mind focus on finding the name. He shook his head, his heart breaking for some reason. __"I… __I don't remember", he whispered._ /

* * *

And then the memory abandoned him, just as swiftly as it'd first arrived – and he opened his eyes with a gasp the exact second the song ended.

It appeared he wasn't the only one feeling the affects. For beside him Sasuke stiffened completely – almost started to shake – and before he could open his mouth the boy had bounced up and dashed away, face even paler than usual.

He swallowed thickly, not managing to make himself move just yet. "Sasuke…" The room's door slammed closed.

"Naruto? Are you okay?" Turning his gaze towards the voice, he met Neji's somewhat worried face. "You're shaking."

Looking down, he realized that he indeed was. And the fact that Neji's hand was on his shoulder didn't make it any better. "Yeah, I'm fine." He then frowned, feeling far from comfortable. "Just… Let go, will you?"

Just then the room's door opened and closed again. They looked up to find out if Sasuke had come back, only to discover that Gaara had left as well.

Tsunade sighed heavily. "Naruto, Neji, go after them, will you? The rest of us will continue the session."

Naruto was moving long before she was finished, something uncomfortable squirming inside him. He never noticed Kabuto following him with his gaze.

Naruto didn't know how long he'd been looking, until he realized that he'd forgotten one place. He knocked firmly on the bahtroom's door, and emitted a sigh of relief when hearing someone moving around inside. "Sasuke?" There was no response apart from the sound of someone throwing up. Something squeezed to a tight ball in his stomach. "I'm coming in."

He pushed the door open to find a sight that almost broke his heart. Sasuke was kneeling on the floor, visibly fighting against the trembling that'd taken over his body. The boy's face held a sickly pale shade, and slightly wide onyx eyes shimmered with tears the raven would probably never allow himself to shed. The reek of vomit was thick in the tiny room.

He swallowed a little, taking a hesitant step closer and wondering what exactly the Uchiha had remembered. "Hey, it's… It's okay." He placed a hopefully comforting hand to the boy's shoulder. "You're safe now. Whatever you saw… It's in the past. Everything okay." He wasn't sure if Sasuke even heard him.

And so they spent there for a long time, Sasuke throwing up from time to time and never remembering to push his hand away. No further words were needed.

* * *

Neji managed to find Gaara surprisingly easily. The boy was leaning against the wall of a nearby library, seeming ready to explode.

He approached cautiously. "What just happened?" he inquired.

There was something… almost dangerous in Gaara's eyes when the boy looked at him. "Leave him alone already, Hyuuga – leave both of them alone."

He frowned, not quite understanding. "What's that to you?"

Something he didn't quite manage to read flashed in the redhead's eyes. "Just forget about him already. Because whatever it is you think you could accomplish with him… It's too late for that." So saying, without giving him the slightest chance to ask questions, the boy had already left, leaving him wondering what had just happened.

He never had the time to process his thoughts on the situation at hand before a voice he recognized far too well spoke. "Hello, Neji." Turning around slowly, unwillingly, he met the solemn face of Ibiki Morino. "It looks like we need to talk."

His steps stiff and heavy, Neji allowed himself to be led into a tiny room, where Hinata was already waiting for him. It was clear the girl had been crying – there were still some tears on her cheeks.

He frowned. "What the hell is this?" he demanded in a sharp tone.

Hinata trembled as she spoke. "I… I couldn h-hold it in a-any longer, Neji. I… I told t-them – and y-you should, t-too." She sobbed dryly. "Y-You saw him, t-too. So p-please, Neji…" Her voice faded away.

Ibiki also looked at him. "We know that you saw the same thing as your cousin. The sooner you speak, the sooner we'll have him convicted."  
He could've ended the hell he'd been living in for years right then, he could've brought it all to a stop. But he just wasn't courageous enough that – not when both Hinata and Ibiki were staring at him expectantly. This was all too much.

And that's why he took a step backwards, shaking his head. "You won't be able to stop him", he announced rather sharply before turning around and walking away. He slammed the door shut as he left, his eyes stinging as all the memories flashed before them.

_Sorry_, he mused, but it didn't help.

All he could see was Hanabi's accusing face.

* * *

Sasuke's head was whirring from too many thoughts and lack of sleep as he lay on his bed, staring at the roof above him and the shadows dancing on it in entrancing patterns. Breathing was a difficult task all of a sudden, and thinking was even harder.

All of a sudden the room's door opened. He wasn't entirely sure why his chest reacted the way it did when he found Naruto stood there.

He frowned. "What…?"

Naruto seemed sheepish, uncertain. When the blond pulled the door closed it became completely dark. Somehow he preferred it that way. "I… I was just… worried, about you, I guess."  
Something close to ache flashed inside him. He shifted so that his back was to Naruto. "Don't be", he muttered.

He wanted Naruto to go away and leave him alone, wanted to…

But, of course, none of such happened. Instead of leaving Naruto walked closer, making the bed dip when sitting to its side. "Are you still feeling sick? You feel kind of warm."

His eyes narrowed. "Just drop it, will you?"

Naruto sighed heavily. "Look… I'm tired, and I can tell that so are you. So let's drop this crap already." And before either one of them realized what was happening the blond had laid down to the bed next to him, so close that their warmths couldn't be told apart.

He knew he should've snarled at the blond to go away, for the sake of the boy's safety. He also wasn't comfortable with… intimate contact like this. But suddenly all he could do was lay perfectly still and let Naruto wrap a pair of warm arms around him. He frowned at the sensations inside him.

His heart… was beating in a strange rhythm, and he felt a little bit too hot to his own liking. But, no matter how little he liked it, he also felt safe – just like all those years earlier.

In a matter of moments he'd fallen asleep, his head falling softly to rest against Naruto shoulder. And for the few hours they both slept everything was alright in the world.

* * *

_One Week Later_

* * *

When arriving to Tengoku that day, Naruto could immediately feel that something was wrong. His suspicions were confirmed when when he accidentally ran into a conversation he probably shouldn't have heard.

A rather huge, scar-faced man groaned while folding his arms. "He wouldn't say another word. Most of the time I wasn't even sure if he knew I was there."

Tsunade's expression was somewhat defeated while she sighed and rubbed her face with one hand. "Damn it… I was hoping he'd be ready for this already."

The man's expression turned wry. "So was I." The man then glanced towards a nearby door. "How is he now?"

Tsunade shook her head. "I sent one of the younger doctors, Kabuto, to give him something to calm him down. But it's going to take a while before recovers fully from an episode like that – he hasn't had as bad in a long time."

"Hmm." The man emitted something close to a growl and punched the wall so hard it almost left a mark. "We're never catching Orochimaru like this."

Naruto's eyes widened a little at the mention of the name, and unable to stop himself he stepped forth. "Orochimaru?"

Both adults looked towards him. Tsunade took her time before trying talking. "Sasuke's… in an unstable condition in his room. Could you go and make sure he's alright? But be careful."

Naruto didn't have to be told twice. He nodded, and was on his way before anyone could say another word.

-

Ibiki frowned while watching the blond hurrying away. "Who was that kid?"

"Naruto Uzumaki – our new trainee." She gave him a frown. "Why?"

Ibiki's eyes flashed. "Tsunade… I think there's something I should tell you."

-

Naruto peered rather cautiously into Sasuke's room, and felt something inside him break at the sight that greeted him inside.

Sasuke was sitting in the furthest corner, his face pale and carrying a nearly haunted expression. The Uchiha didn't give any sign whatsoever that would've told the raven had even noticed him entering.

He swallowed thickly and braced himself, then approached. "I… heard you had it rough."

Sasuke moved his head so that his eyes were directed towards the room's ceiling. The Uchiha's onyx eyes had gained a shade even darker than the usual. "Just drop it. I'm fine."

Naruto wanted to scream at the top of his lungs, wanted to shake Sasuke – anything to make the Uchiha realize just how badly things were wrong. "Damn it, Sasuke – don't you dare do this to me! I'm not letting you shut me out when you were just getting better!"

Sasuke looked at him with eyes that carried absolutely no emotions. "You shouldn't care, and you shouldn't remember", the boy stated a voice that was raw from the lack of use. "Just get out of this when you still can. Because no matter how much you seem to want to, you can't save me."

If he hadn't known it useless, he would've grabbed the Uchiha's hand when the boy got up. "I want to help you."  
For a moment Sasuke stopped, not looking towards him. "In that case you're an idiot." And with those words the raven was out of his reach.

He didn't even realize how badly he was shaking as he stood there, barely managing to control his stinging eyes as he watched how the raven disappeared, for some reason seeming to take a lot of him along. And as though wanting to torment him a memory came, carrying along such pain that it almost swept him off his feet.

* * *

/ _A ten-year-old's eyes shouldn't have been able to look like Sasuke's did that night, as they stood together in pouring rain. The bruises covering the raven's face were a stark, disgusting contrast to the unhealthily pale skin. The boy's skin, however, wasn't burnt yet. "No matter how much you seem to want to, you can't save me. So leave me alone already."_

_Just as stubborn as he was now, Naruto shook his head vigorously. "I'm getting you out of this, I promise." He grit his teeth, squeezing the hand he hadn't realized he'd taken. "Tonight… Tonight, we'll run away from here – just you and me. I promise you that you'll never have to be scared and hurt again. Neither of us will have to be."_ /

* * *

"Naruto?" It took a long moment before he realized that the voice came from the present, and belonged to Neji. "Are you… alright?"

Tears had practically blinded him as he lifted his gaze to glare at the brunet. "Leave me alone", he muttered, his voice blurred by tears. "Go away." He wasn't in the mood for a 'conversation'.

But just as so many times before, Neji wouldn't listen. Before he could do more than cry out in a protest the boy had wrapped a pair of rather clumsy arms around him and pulled him close.

In his right mind, he would've snarled at the brunet, told him to let go and get the hell away from him. But the moment he had no strength for such. Instead he leaned his exhausted, throbbing head against Neji's suddenly familiar shoulder and let the tears keep rolling.

-

Naruto, of course, remained unaware of the drama he was causing.

All of a sudden feeling that he was being watched, Neji lifted his gaze. He found Gaara stood not too far away. There was a clearly hurt, dark and threatening look on the redhead's face as their gazes met.

No words were said before Gaara had already spun around and walked away. For some reason watching the boy walk away felt worse to Neji than it should've.

And he couldn't help wondering what he'd done wrong.

* * *

Iruka didn't dream often. But that night, flashes he'd already almost managed to push away came back to haunt him.

He heard the shouts.

He smelled the tears.

He felt the other child's trembling.

He tasted blood in his mouth as he accidentally bit his tongue.

It was the first time he ever saw his best friend – his whole damn world – cry.

And then his eyes flew open, blurry and itchy. "Kakashi…"

A hand squeezed his, most likely reflexively. "It's okay." Turning his gaze, he met the same eyes that'd just been so filled with hurt and pain in his dreams. Kakashi's voice was soothing, although it seemed to lock away something. "It was just a dream."

His voice broke when he first started to speak, so he tried again, cursing how weak his tone was. "I… I never wanted to leave. But… They said…" His eyes blurred again. "I'm sorry. I didn't even…"  
Kakashi's thumb rubbed the back of his hand, making him feel even drowsier than he had already. He couldn't read the man's eyes. "Shh. Just go to sleep. Everything's alright."

He really did want to sleep. He was so tired…

Kakashi's warm hand guided him into the world of oblivion.

-

Kakashi didn't know what to think and feel as he sat there, watching how Iruka finally drifted back into sleep.

The brunet's onchologist had warned him that Iruka would be exhausted and disordered now that the medication had basically crushed his immune system – that's why the man was in the hospital. But… Somehow he'd never prepared himself for this.

This pale, rapidly balding and skinny man before him just couldn't be his Iruka. None of this felt real.

The sight becoming almost too much for him to bear, he prepared himself to leave. But just as he was about to get up Iruka's hand squeezed his tightly. And although he knew it was only out of a reflex, he just couldn't deny the request.

(He didn't even notice how night turned into morning as he sat there, soundlessly guarding Iruka's sleep.)

* * *

Tsunade was, to say the least, surprised by the look on Naruto's face when he entered her office quite late that evening. For the first time ever the boy seemed sad, even defeated.

She frowned. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

The boy swallowed laboriously, obviously fighting to find the will to meet her eyes. "I… I don't think I can keep working here much longer."

Shock struck her into a state that was close to utter muteness. He was one of the best trainees ever worked in Tengoku – why…? "What are you talking about?" she all but spat out in the end.

Naruto's blue eyes shimmered with nearly spilling tears. "I… I just can't, okay?" The boy grit his teeth and looked away, which told her that she'd soon hear a lie. "Iruka… Iruka's in the hospital again, and the school start soon. I just… I don't have the strength anymore. There are other things I have to focus on."

Her shoulders slumped, and she was fairly sure her eyes filled with everything there was swirling inside her. "Naruto… Are you sure you want to do this?"

The blond gave her a heartbreakingly sad smile. "There's nothing I can do for anyone here, anyway."

It took a long moment before she could speak. "One week." She went on when facing the boy's disapproving expression. "I need to find someone to replace you first. Just one more week. If you still want to go after that, then so be it."

Naruto nodded somewhat stiffly. "'K." Just then her phone started to ring. Seeing his opportunity, Naruto started to leave hurriedly. "I'll see you tomorrow. I'll fill out my resignation report then." And with that he was gone.

There were only few occasions when she'd wanted to scream as badly as she did when looking at the closed door right then.

-

Naruto's steps had never been as heavy as they were when he left Tengoku that day, his head bowed with defeat and his eyes stinging so badly that it was almost impossible to hold the tears at bay.

He didn't know how long he'd walked, but he shuddered once realizing where his feet had led him.

He was stood behind the gate of a rather modern-looking orphanage, watching how fifteen or so kids of different ages played around, laughing and shouting.

All of a sudden something caught his attention.

On the orphanage's yard, a rather young man with long, loosely tied black hair was ushering giggling children to go inside with a soft tone. The man's eyes were hidden by a white fabric that was most likely supposed to protect them from something.

He blinked twice, shivering a little.

The raven… looked so familiar. If only he'd been able to put his finger on it…

Just then the other male seemed to sense his presence. A frown appeared as unseeing eyes cast about. "Is someone there?"

Embarrassed, he realized that he'd have to say something. "Just… me. I was passing by and…" He trailed off, realizing that there was no need to explain.

The other nodded slowly, then frowned again. "Your voice sounds familiar."

He was just about to ask when a girl of about his age with black hair and somewhat menacing dark eyes appeared, grabbing the other male's hand. "C'mon, 'Tachi." She cast a threatening look towards him while speaking again in a chirping tone. "It's time to go inside – the kids are waiting for you."

Tachi nodded, then tried to glance his way. Whatever the raven had been supposed to say became swallowed down in the end.

He shuddered as he watched the two of them walk away.

Why did he have a feeling that he'd just found something important?

* * *

That night, Sasuke dreamt of fire burning his flesh, of fire stealing away his brother, of screams and the stench of burning flesh.

He wasn't sure if the dreams or reality were worse when he woke up to Kabuto's voice, coming from behind the door of his room. "_Don't worry about the nurse – with how much medication I gave her, she'll be asleep for hours._"

"_Very good._" The velvet voice was smooth, made him feel sick to his stomach.

_Go away_, he pleaded, squeezing his eyes tightly shut. _Just go the fuck away and leave me alone._ _Not tonight…_

But despite all the door was pushed open. Steps approached him, and before he could even catch his breath he'd been pulled up. "Open your eyes." Snake's eyes looked directly to his when he obeyed reluctantly. "You… have caused us a great deal of trouble lately. But that's alright – we have ways to take care of misbehaving children."

His eyes narrowed as he balled his fists. "Don't you dare touch me."

Orochimaru had, however, never been one to listen to anyone's orders. The man leaned to his ear. "Remember what could've happened to Naruto because of you. Remember what happened to Itachi", the snake's voice whispered. "Remember what could still happen."

And then the needle pierced his skin. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut when the burning sensation came. Right then there was only one thing that could distract him from the affects.

_Naruto…!_

-

When leaving the room and locking the door some time later, Orohimaru and Kabuto failed to notice that they weren't as alone as they'd thought.

In the shadows, Juugo frowned when watching the two of them. Cold shivers danced on and underneath his skin.

* * *

TBC, un.

* * *

A/N: Uh huh, and the mess keeps getting worse. (winces) Poor things!

GAH, I'm in a huge hurry right now, so I've gotta start tuning out. PLEASE, do leave a review – it'd mean a lot to hear what you thoughts about this chapter!

IN THE NEXT ONE: Some secrets are revealed and mistakes realized when the going gets even tougher. Is it too late to fix the damage?

ONLY THREE TO FOUR CHAPTERS TO GO! (sniffs)

Until next time – I REALLY hope ya'll all join in then!

Be good!

* * *

**ZakuKura:** (gawks) You enjoyed the chapter THAT much – and you check out for an update every day?! (beams, and hugs) You're making me blush here!

Super-sized thank you for the heartwarming review!

I REALLY hope you'll enjoy the next one as much.

-

**kai:** Sasuke has some wicked self-control, doesn't he? I know I wouldn't have been able to hold myself back!

All those problems – and Haku died! (sniffs) Those poor things. All we can do is hope that things will turn for the better soon, ne? (sniffs again)

BUT, at least it looks like Iruka's recovering. Let's hope that'll last – he'd deserve nothing less!

Monumetal thank yous for the review!

Until next time, I hope.

-

**qyolover1:** Let's hope Naruto and Sasuke will find happiness, especially with all they've gone through, ne? (sniffs)

Gigantic thank yous for the review – you can't even imagine how happy I am to hear that you've had that good of a ride with the story thus far!

I really hope ya'll be staying tuned.


	8. The Clearing Depths

A/N: It's update time! (grins) You know, this chapter was born surprisingly easily. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or bad… (sweatdrops)

BUT, first off… MAN, thank you so much for those absolutely unbelievable reviews you've left for this story – you've made me so happy! (GLOMPS) THANK YOU! As per usual, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because I've already kept babbling long enough, let's rock! (gulps) I really hope ya'll find this worth the wait.

* * *

CHAPTER 8: The Clearing Depths

* * *

_Two Days Later_

* * *

Naruto felt cold when he stood by the doorway of Tengoku's common space that early morning, watching how Sasuke sat before a piano, his fingers ghosting above the keys but never really having the will create music. The silence was tense, filled with several emotions he couldn't name, and he found himself afraid of speaking out.

Then Sasuke started to play – first quietly, then with much more force until the music seemed to be screaming. Naruto had never heard this song before, he was quite sure. But it felt like something special, something reserved only for few occasions.

It took long, but eventually he managed to gather himself enough to move. Sasuke tensed up when he stood by the raven's side, and it hurt more than it should've.

So the distance between them was back.

He took a deep breath before attempting talking. "I… need to tell you something." It was harder than he'd expected to speak out the words. "I won't be working here much longer – I've got only five more shifts." He swallowed with a lot of difficulty, cursing how his eyes stung. Wasn't this supposed to be the right thing to do? "I just… I thought I should tell you."

He waited for Sasuke's reaction with his heart thumping, not sure of what he was expecting. What he got matched with nothing in his imagination.

Sasuke's eyes were terrifyingly dull when the boy shrugged. "If you want to leave so badly, then go."

He might've been fooled if he hadn't heard the metallic sidetone, the hurt the Uchiha was fighting to hide. He gulped. "Do you want me to go?"

Sasuke snorted, playing some angry notes that ripped his insides. "What the fuck does it matter what I want?"

He didn't manage to speak. And then it was too late.

Steps were heard beforeTsunade appeared to the room's doorway. There was a look on her face that unnerved Naruto. "I think we need to have a little talk", she announced, and her tone told that she wasn't asking for a permission.

He nodded stiffly and followed.

As soon as they made it to the woman's office she pulled out his resignation report as though it'd been the answer to eveything.

He blinked twice, not quite understanding. "I told you I'd do this days ago."

Tsunade smiled wryly. "I… suppose I didn't believe you until now." She gave him a long, evaluative look. "I guess there's no point in asking if you're okay."

He gulped again, looking away. "I don't want to leave him."

"Then don't."

He groaned, rubbing his face with one hand. "It's not that easy, okay?" He took a deep breath, and focused on the tiny insect that was making its way determinedly across the hopelessly huge floor. "It's… not that I wouldn't care. I care too much. And that's why I can't help him anymore." He chuckled bitterly. "This doesn't make any sense, right?"

Tsunade sighed heavily, appearing much older than usual all of a sudden. "Actually… I'm afraid it does." She looked at him directly to eyes. "But I don't want you to make a hasty decision."

"I'm not." It came quickly, so easily that it surprised even him. His eyes stung, and he blinked furiously. "Look… Right now, I can barely keep even myself together, okay? So… How am I supposed to help Sasuke?" _No matter how much I'd want to._

Tsunade couldn't say anything to that.

As though responding to his emotions, rain started to fall heavily outside.

* * *

When Naruto finally made it home and peered cautiously into Iruka's bedroom, he just had to smile at what he found.

Inside, Kakashi gave a sleeping, pale yet slightly flushed Iruka's cheek a tiny, tender kiss before turning away from the brunet. He was almost sure he saw a brief blush when the silver-haired noticed him. "I… just came to make sure he's alright." The man cleared his throat. "I heard he's been feeling feeling queasy."

He nodded, unable to hold back a mischevious smile. At least something good was happening. "He's been feeling so nauseous that he's had trouble sleeping. But it looks like he's doing just fine now."

Now there was a definite blush on Kakashi's cheeks. The man started to leave. "I… might be able to stop by tomorrow, before my nightshift starts. Could you tell him that?"

He nodded, almost breaking to a grin. "I will. See you tomorrow."  
Kakashi left as swiftly as possible.

As soon as the man had left, he focused on Iruka. It was good to see the man so peaceful – almost smiling – although he knew it wouldn't last long. And all of a sudden he just couldn't resist the temptation. Wasn't even he supposed to deserve some consolation at a time like this?

Fortunately Iruka didn't wake up when he climbed into the bed and lay down, breathing in the familiar scent of the man who was as close as a father to him. For a while everything was alright.

He managed to fall into a fitful slumber.

* * *

_Four Days Later_

* * *

That morning, Tsunade appeared to the therapy room carrying a cardboard box. There was something close to a smile on her face. "This morning we'll try something different", she announced, then looked towards the box. "There's someone I want you to meet."

The people currently in the room – Naruto, Sakura, Neji, Sai, Sasuke, Gaara, Juugo and Hinata – looked on with suspicion when something jumped out of the box. It turned out to be a tiny, white kitten with black paws.

At first the kitten looked at them all as though it'd found itself thrown in front of predators, then seemed to notice something. And as soon as it did it sprinted to Sasuke and jumped to the boy's lap with a startled mew, looking into the boy's eyes as though begging for help.

For the longest time the two of them kept looking at each other with confusion, unsure as to what the next move should be. Then, visibly bracing itself, the kitten lifted one of its paws and laid it softly to Sasuke's hand. And quite unlike they'd all been expecting, the boy gave it a couple of rather clumsy pats. His motions earned a very pleased, purring sound from the feline. The Uchiha, on the other hand, seemed to fight furiously against smiling. A connection had been formed, anyone could see.

Naruto realized that he was practically holding his breath while watching all this. Because at that moment, when watching the way the Uchiha treated the animal and how those onyx orbs filled with life, he felt what'd been swelling inside him since they'd first met explode. And suddenly being in the same room with Sasuke felt dangerous.

In the end Hinata, who'd been sitting nearby Sasuke, dared to move. The kitten gave her a confused look when she stroked its fur, but in the end kept purring in approval. At that moment Hinata did something that hadn't been heard in years. She laughed out loud – the sound was bubbly and filled with happiness. Her eyes shone when she looked at Neji. "It's just like Tiger!" There was no hesitation or stutter.

Neji's expression was a strange mixture of several emotions when he approached the feline almost cautiously, then took it surprisingly skillfully into his arms. The kitten squirmed a little at first, but calmed down once understanding that the boy wasn't about to harm it. Everyone was shocked when he laid the cat into Gaara's arms.

The redhead's papers were filled with mentions of him having resulted into brutal violence, many had viewed him as a monster. And deep down they were all horrified as to what he'd do to the poor, tiny animal.

But nothing violent happened. Instead – much to everyone's shock – the redhead merely blinked, subconsciously stroking the animal's fur, and looked towards Neji, demanding answers. The Hyuuga looked back, speaking as much with his eyes. The soundless dialogue obviously reassured down Gaara, because the redhead focused on the cat once more, kept patting it absent-mindedly, like trying to determine what exactly it was.

The confused silence lasted for a long time until soft, slow steps were heard. Gaara looked up to see a somewhat hesitant Juugo stood before him. "Can I… hold her?"

Gaara quirked an eyebrow. "It's a female?"

The much taller teen nodded.

As the others watched, baffled and dazed, the redhead handed the also confused cat rather gently to Juugo's arms. The moment the tall boy held it, the cat yawned, cuddled closer to the teen's warmth and fell asleep.

"Well…" Tsunade sounded almost shocked while she stared at the sight unfolding before them. "This… was a surprise."

Naruto's eyes, having a mind of their own, found Sasuke's. And emotions were dangerously close to slipping from his hold. "Yeah", he managed. "A surprise."

* * *

That night was one of goodbyes for Ino at the airport.

It'd been bad enough to hug Naruto and a playfully resisting Kiba goodbye. But now she was face to face with Sai.

He took a deep breath when looking at her. "I wouldn't want you to go."

She ran a hand through her hair, giving an exasperated sigh. "Look, I… I've gotta do this, okay? So please don't make this any harder than this already is."

Surprisingly enough there was no hurt in Sai's eyes – somewhere along the way the worst pain and soreness had subsided. The boy nodded. "'K." He then looked down, always having been bad at situations like this. "I… wish you well."

All of a sudden there was a tiny smile on her face. "I know." And before anyone could see it coming she gave the boy a firm, tender hug. She spoke so quietly that it could barely be heard. "I'm sorry, that I can't…" She trailed off.

Sai nodded, hugging her back although he obviously felt awkward. And it was all the two of them needed.

Just then the last call for her flight came. Barely managing to hold on the smile that'd been so very hard to create, she waved at her friends. "I'll see you soon, okay?" They all knew she wasn't about to come back once she left.

And with that one final look she turned around and walked away without looking back. Because if she'd looked, she might've never been able to stay firm.

-

Sai sighed heavily when Ino had disappeared from sight.

Kiba, who was usually such a loudmouth, laid a comforting hand to his shoulder. "I'm sorry, man." The boy's tone was atypically solemn. "I know this sucks."

Sai's eyes were even darker than usual. "I… talked to Shikamaru, and he told me he'd come here." The boy grit his teeth hard. "I was hoping he'd try."

Naruto opened his mouth, but before the boy could speak his cell-phone started to bleep. Blue eyes flashed when the boy noticed who the caller was. "It's from Tengoku." The blond looked at them. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

They could only nod.

Not much later, Kiba scratched his hair with apparent discomfort. "I… kinda have a date with Karin, so…"

Sai surprised himself with actually being able to smile a bit. "You can go. I'll see you tomorrow."

Almost as soon as the brunet had left, his cell-phone snapped to life. A dark flare crossed his whole being when he noticed that the number was Shikamaru's. He took a deep, evening breath before accepting the call. "Where were you?"

"_It's… It's me._" To his surprise, the voice was Shikamaru's father's. The man sounded like he'd been holding back tears. "_I… couldn't get a hold of Ino or Naruto, so I…_" There were strange sounds. "_There's… been an accident. Do you… think you could come to the hospital?_"

* * *

Naruto's heart hammered when he entered Sasuke's room about half an hour later, to find the raven kneeling before the bathroom's sink, shaking for most likely several reasons. The boy had never looked quite as frail as he did just then, and the mere sight was enough to scare him.

He swallowed thickly, then moved with difficulty. "I… heard you weren't doing well, so I came to check up on you."

"I'm fine", Sasuke all but barked out instantly. "So stop pitying me and beat it." Those words were, however, swiftly proven a lie when the raven swayed dangerously.

He dashed closer just as the boy managed to steady himself once more, and his hand was left lingering mere inches from the boy's back. He couldn't touch anymore, he reminded himself bitterly. Their connection just wasn't strong enough anymore. "It's okay", he murmured, hoping that he would've been allowed to touch, that he would've had some magical way to make things right, that he would've had the strength to do more. "Everything's… gonna work out, okay?"

Sasuke wouldn't look his way, didn't even react much to his words. "Hmph", came through what sounded like a thick layer.

He then decided that he couldn't just stand around any longer. Quite cautiously he lifted his hand and placed it to the raven's shoulder. "Look, Sasuke…"

That was the furthest he got. Because at that second Sasuke turned his gaze and looked at him with almost wild eyes he'd never seen before. "If you're going to leave again anyway…", the boy all but hissed. "… then leave me the fuck alone already. Stop playing with me." The raven's whole body was shaking, and the tightly balled fists told quite clearly that the boy definitely wasn't acting.

This pain, this anger, this sadness the Uchiha fought so very hard to hide… It was very much real. And he was the cause. That realization hurt so much it almost stole all his breath away.

He didn't know how far the situation might've gone if the room's door hadn't opened just then. In a matter of moments Tsunade was with them, giving him a look that was a mixture of sympathy and something colder. "Naruto, I think it'd be for the best if you'd leave. I'm afraid there's nothing you can do."

He nodded, although it happened with difficulty, and started to make his way reluctantly towards the room's door. He kept his eyes on Sasuke for a long time, but couldn't face the raven anymore when Tsunade eventually pulled a needle from her pocket – careful not to let the Uchiha see it – and the boy gave an outraged near-whimper when his skin was pierced. That sound echoed in Naruto's ears when he was finally out of the room.

Burying his face into his hands he leaned against the wall, fighting with his all to ease the turmoil inside him although he knew it pointless. He didn't remember ever feeling as low and bad in his life.

"Naruto?" The voice made his head snap up. He found Neji, who was looking at him with some worry and confusion. "Are you alright?"

He looked away once more, fighting with himself. He didn't want to break down in front of the Hyuuga – not when he was feeling the way he did at the moment. "No. But I don't want to talk about it."

Neji snorted. "You sound just like Gaara. He can be such a pain sometimes."

He smiled faintly. "You know it's because you and his feelings confuse him, right?" When the brunet stiffened with shock, he looked towards the boy with disbelief. "Don't tell me you hadn't noticed yet!"

Neji frowned. "Noticed what?"

If he'd been in a little bit lighter mood, he might've laughed out loud. At the moment, however, he could only smirk and shake his head. "You can be even more dense than me sometimes." Then deciding to go before he'd cause even more damage, he waved and started to leave. "See you later." With that he started to walk away.

-

Naruto's words struck Neji paralyzed and cold. He blinked slowly when facts started to sink in, slowly yet surely.

Now what was he supposed to do?

* * *

Sai's face was buried in his hands when he sat in the hospital's waiting room, fighting with more emotions than he ever remembered feeling.

He was almost startled when someone touched his shoulder. Looking up, he found Sakura's stunningly sympathetic face. "I came as soon as you called." Without waiting for invitation she sat beside him. "What the hell happened?"

He shook his head and looked away, deciding that the sickly green walls of the building needed paint. "It… was a hit and run." He swallowed thickly to rid the sickening taste from his mouth. "He's… in the ICU. No one's allowed to see him."

He sensed Sakura's nod. She remained silent for a while. "Have you… called Naruto?"

He shook his head. "He has enough of things to worry about already." He took a deep breath, feeling a brief sting in his eyes. "I'll tell him, if…" He trailed off, not wanting to say the rest.

All of a sudden there was an arm around him. He blinked with surprise when noticing that Sakura was actually trying to calm him down. And he was even more surprised to realize that he leaned closer to her.

No words were said that long night.

* * *

The following afternoon, Naruto felt extremely uncomfortable when saying goodbye to the inhabitants and staff of Tengoku. Juugo said his byes with a brief nod, and Gaara gave something that sounded like a 'Hn'. Hinata could only look at him with a bright blush and a sad expression. Tsunade and Shizune went as far as hugging him. Kabuto shook his hand, making him feel cold all over for some reason.

Sakura, on the other hand, sighed heavily when looking at him. "I really wish you wouldn't give up this easily. But… I guess I can't blame you, either." And suddenly she hugged him. "I guess I'll be seeing you anyway, right?"

He smiled faintly. "Yeah."

When their embrace broke he glanced towards the room's door. Still not a trace of Sasuke.

"Go and find him, will you?" Sakura's words were a command, not a request. "You'll regret it forever if you don't."

There was a heavy weight in his chest and stomach when he nodded. "I know."

After waving goodbye once more, he headed towards Sasuke's room. As he'd expected, he found the Uchiha there, sitting on the floor with his back leaning against the wall. The boy's eyes seemed empty, dead. And his heart broke once more while he slumped to sit beside the raven.

He would've wanted to touch, but didn't dare to. All he could focus on the warmth that was so very close yet much too far.

And suddenly he felt like he was giving up too easily.

He swallowed thickly, unsure what to do. He almost touched Sasuke, but decided against it at the last moment. "Look, I… I really don't wanna go, okay? I… don't wanna leave you like this." He swallowed thickly. "So, if you want me to stay…"

The raven looked away and leaned a little more heavily against the wall, appearing exhausted. "Just get going, will you? It'll start to rain any minute now."

It felt like a slap against his face, and it took his all to restrain a wince. His eyes stung when he straightened his form and took an unwilling step away from the raven. "I… I hope you'll be okay one day. And… I hope that I'll remember, enough to…" He trailed off, no longer knowing what he wanted to say.

He wondered bitterly if anything he could've said would've made much difference. For Sasuke remained still and soundless, like a statue of some sort. The connection he'd once felt seemed miles away.

Swallowing thickly, he hauled his body up, turned around and waited – for what, he didn't know – until he finally regained his strength and walked out of the room with slow, oddly heavy steps.

Wrong. All of this felt wrong.

Not sure why he thought she'd be able to help, he knocked on the door of Tsunade's office. "Hey, are you in there?"

He pushed the door open to find the office empty. Something, however, caught his attention. On her desk was a file that had his name written on it.

Why the hell would Tsunade have a file on him?!

Surprised, even shocked, he approached and started to flip through the papers.

Photographs of him as a child – a scared, scawny kid who obviously hadn't been looked after properly.

A document proving that he'd been adopted to Orochimaru's orphanage.

Several documents of him being hospitalized for all kinds of injuries, heavy suspicions that he was being abused.

And finally, he came a across a picture that represented about twenty children with somewhat grim expressions – amongst them he could see both himself and Sasuke.

The flood of memories started so surprisingly and with such speed that his whole world swayed, almost turning black.

* * *

/ _Eight-years-old Naruto's ears perked up to the sounds coming through the door. "… former guardian, Sarutobi, died of a heart-attack six months ago, and we still haven't found a place for him. You're a heaven-sent."  
The smooth, velvet-like voice sickened him for some reason. "Children are our most valuable gift, no? It's our duty to look after then._

_And then the door opened, presenting him to a man who had long, black hair and strange snake's eyes that gave him chills. The man smiled at him. "Hello, Naruto. My name is Orochimaru, and I'm here to take you to my orphanage."_ /

* * *

/ _A ten-years-old Naruto always enjoyed training sessions with Sasuke the most._

_The raven was quick, skilled and always focused. Sometimes he could've sworn the boy could somehow memorize and foresee his movements._

_But there was also one downside to training with the Uchiha – he never won. And that rather late evening he once again found himself pinned underneath Sasuke, who's eyes seemed to carry a hint of red in the light of a setting sun._

_His eyes narrowed. "You just got lucky."_

_The raven snorted. "Again? Isn't that excuse getting kind of old?"_

_He was about to shoot back a remark, but never got the time before Orochimaru's voice spoke. "Congratulations, Sasuke", the man complimented in a sickeningly sweet tone. Snake's eyes were poison when looking at the raven, but – being just a child – Naruto couldn't see that then. "This means that you've reached to next level."_

_Whereas he felt envy, Sasuke seemed ready to throw up while looking down with sharp eyes._ /

* * *

/ _Only months later, Sasuke was sick – so badly that a doctor named Danzo was invited to the orphanage. Seeing the man was enough to make Naruto sick with worry – more often than not someone died when he appeared._

_Through the storm raging outside, he managed to __eavesdrop_ _Danzo and Orochimaru talking. "… of the bags ruptured. The damage was already pretty bad."_

_For the first time ever, Orochimaru swore under his breath, then spoke. "How is he now?"_

_"He's got a pretty high fever, and the surgical wound is almost bound to get infected. That brat is lucky if he makes it through the night."_

_Naruto felt like someone had stolen all breath and warmth from him. His eyes were hurting as he started to shake._

_NO! He wasn't about to accept that, that…_

_His usual determination filling him, he made his way to Sasuke's room._

_It made him even more worried than before to find Sasuke sleeping, perhaps even unconscious, and terrifyingly still. Sweat trickled on the raven's utterly pale forehead, and the boy seemed to be shaking._

_He swallowed thickly, and in some other situation he might've found it amusing how speechless he was all of a sudden. He'd never felt as scared and helpless as he did then. And all he could do was slump to the boy's bedside and take one of the much too warm, limp hands into his._

_Maybe, if he kept Sasuke company and kept holding on as well, the boy might just make it until the morning._

_All he could do was wait and hope._ /

* * *

/ _That day, everything had gone wrong from the start. And as Naruto made his way through the orphanage's basement, with only the candle he was carrying providing light and Sasuke following him, there was a bad feeling inside him._

_They, however, had no other choice. They had to get away fast, before Sasuke would be harmed even worse than he was already._

_All of a sudden Sasuke stopped with a sharp exhale, and he instinctively did the same, turning towards the raven with a frown. "Sasuke? What's wrong?"_

_Onyx eyes met his, even darker than usual. "Someone's here."_

_  
Before he got the chance to ask, he found Kabuto stood before him. And then he was hurled against the wall with such force that his vision swayed, and for a moment all he could make out was a blur of colors._

_He couldn't tell how much later he heard Orochimaru's muffled voice, then Sasuke's screams that made him want to cry out. He smelled blood, heard the sounds of such pain he couldn't even imagine, and tears were out of his control. "Leave him alone…!" he whimpered. "Leave him alone!"_

_But the screams continued, tearing his child's heart to pieces._

_And then he realized that he could smell smoke, and gasped. The candle, he'd dropped it…! The building…!_

_"Let's go", Orochimaru spoke in a voice that carried no emotions. "We have no further use for these two."_

_And then he was able to move again. He crawled to a sitting position, then stood, wincing at the pain that came from the part of his head he'd hit, and looked around anxiously._

_The smell of smoke was thick and suffocating, seemed to steal absolutely all air from his lungs, and Naruto coughed sharply while fumbling forward, his eyes stinging hellishly. "Sas… Sasuke!" he barely managed, and coughed again, barely seeing from the smoke. "Where are you?" His heart hammered with such terror he'd never felt before._

_And then he saw the dark figure standing some steps away. Blood was pooling underneath the child, but no matter how fervently he tried to look he couldn't see the damage._ _Sasuke lifted his head although it visibly took all the child's energy. The face he met was no longer the one he'd known – half of his best friend's face was burned, and the child was trembling pitiably, visibly barely clinging to consciousness._

_Tears flowed down his cheeks, hot and heavy, while he trembled where he stood. The smell of burning wood and flesh – or perhaps something else – made him want to scream and throw up. "Sasuke…!"_

_And then the raven fell down to his knees, panting and crying a little, most likely from unbearable pain. "Just… fucking go", the boy growled. "He'll… come back, so… go. Go, or I'll never forgive you." And Sasuke's eyes told he meant it._

_And that's when he did something he'd never forgive himself for deep in his heart – something he didn't think he'd be able to live with. He spun around, and started to run, hating himself so much that he wanted to throw up. _

_When he finally collapsed to his knees on the barely standing building's yard, screaming like a wounded beast, he was no longer the same person he'd once been._

_As he left, he never noticed the shadow that dashed into the burning building._ / (1)

* * *

Naruto gasped as the flood of memories started to pass, and his knees almost gave way when a flood of dizziness washed over him. He found it almost impossible to hold the bile down. And he was moving before he even realized it.

* * *

At around the same time, Tsunade sat on the floor next to Sasuke. Trying to reach out for the boy was a slow, extremely irritating process, and she had no idea how much longer she'd be able to go on without starting to scream.

In the end she sighed and looked away from the boy. "Look… I know it hurts that he left. But he did it for the sake of you both, to give you a chance to recover." She took a deep breath. "Sasuke… If you want to help both of you, you need to start talking. So… Please, tell me what happened. Show us that Naruto was right and there's still hope."

At first Tsunade thought she was imagining things when the voice spoke. "He made me swallow them since I was seven." Sasuke's eyes were vacant, as though the boy had been no longer connected to the reality. "They were too big. I felt like choking every time."

Her eyes widened as she listened, barely managing to make herself believe.

She expected Sasuke to shut down completely. Instead that painfully monotone voice spoke again, as though narrating something insignificant – apparently the Uchiha was afraid of the storm that might arise. "I never got caught – they never knew to suspect a child. I hated it, but… At least it was a route out of the usual cage." The boy gave something that sounded like a snort. "Some of those people… were even nice."

She swallowed dryly, shock drying her saliva. "Orochimaru… made you smuggle drugs?"

And at that moment Sasuke, apparently, decided that he'd already said too much. The boy brought his legs to his chest, withdrawing into his own world.

The frustration was almost enough to make her scream. Her voice shook. "Sasuke?" She grit her teeth so hard it hurt, and got up to baddly shaking legs. "I'll… be back in a second, okay?"

She could barely walk, and when she got out of the room she had to lean against the wall. It took ages before she finally managed to speak to Shizune, who'd been waiting for her. "It's… It's even worse than we thought", she muttered, feeling sick to her stomach. She took a deep breath, but it didn't help any.

"What… should we do?" Shizune inquired quietly.

Her eyes darkened. "I'm going to have to have a talk with Kabuto. And then I'll call Ibiki."

* * *

Naruto ran without any aim whatsoever for the longest time – so long that his knees gave out in the end, sending him down to his knees, panting and shaking.

He didn't know how long he'd remained that way until he heard a somewhat familiar voice. "Who's there?" Looking up, he realized that he was kneeling outside the orphanage's gates – and that the raven-haired, blindfolded man he'd seen the last time was stood nearby, trying to look towards him.

"Just… me", he managed in an unsteady voice.

The other male frowned. "Are you alright? You sound strained."

Just then he gave the other male a long, good look – and little by little, as the similarities registered to him, he started to see.

And at that moment he understood everything, so clearly that the realization left him gasping. His knees felt weak once more. "Itachi", he breathed out.

The slightly older male's body grew stiff. "How… do you know my name?"

He smiled, although he wasn't entirely sure why. This was all going over his head. "Through your brother. I… I thought…"

Just then Itachi looked towards him. Formerly soft face carried tremendous hostility, and he knew he'd said something wrong. "Sasuke can't possibly have told you anything", the raven stated in a tone that carried half a dozen emotions. "He… He died, years ago."

He felt a slight tremor of shock and sadness. So both of the brothers had been fed with the same lie. "He's not dead", he stated in a somewhat soft tone as soon as he managed to speak. "He's still very much alive in Tengoku. And he misses you."

Although he couldn't see Itachi's eyes, he saw how the rest of the raven's body reacted while trying to digest his words. The last of the little color there'd been on the Uchiha's face became stolen, and he could've sworn he saw trembling. "They've told me…", the raven murmured, much more to himself than him. "They've said that…"

Just then the same black-haired girl he'd seen with Itachi the last time they'd met appeared, with a chilling look on her face. "So here you are." She grabbed the raven's hand roughly. "The children are waiting for you."

Appearing uncertain, Itachi nodded slowly. And before he managed to make a sound the Uchiha had been taken away, leaving him stood there feeling dizzy.

-

As soon as she'd left Itachi with the children, Kin took her cell-phone and dialed numbers. "Orochimaru-sama? It looks like we have a problem."

* * *

Some hours later, Tsunade was just leaving Sasuke's room when she found Kabuto waiting for her in the hallway. The young man's expression was such that chilled her. "I heard you wanted to have a talk."

Her eyes hardened, although chills of dread ran through her. "Yes." She grit her teeth. "Kabuto… You were seen leaving Sasuke's room with Orochimaru, a wanted criminal. I just went through the tapes of the security camera, and discovered that you two have visited him several times. Could you tell me what the hell is going on?"

Kabuto's eyes flashed. And instead of offering explanations the young male took a step closer. "Oh well, I was sick of playing around already, anyway."

She didn't even know what hit her before everything turned black.

-

Sasuke's eyes flew open when the room's door opened. When he saw Kabuto alone, he knew immediately that something was badly wrong.

His eyes flashed when he jumped out of the bed. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"From the beginning I told Orochimaru it was too dangerous to keep you alive." The boy's voice was dark and hollow. "Now it's time to fix that mistake."

His eyes narrowed. "Leave me the fuck alone."

Kabuto's teeth flashed in the darkness when the man walked up to him before he could stop it, and for a moment he could've sworn he felt something sharp on his neck. "Just hold still, will you? I promise this won't hurt – I'll make this quick."

And at that moment he did the only thing he could think of, the only thing his chaotic, overdriven mind managed to come up with.

Faster than any lighting could strike, he'd snatched the blade from Kabuto's hands. Steel flashed like silver in the night's shadow, and made a strange, whisper-like sound when it was put to use. Kabuto's jacket gave a sigh while the silver-haired fell with a surprised expression.

The reek that followed was too much for Sasuke.

He staggared – almost falling to his knees – and threw up loudly, something warm spilling to his cheeks. He was shaking so badly that his teeth made a hollow sound when clattering together from time to time, but he noticed none of that. All he could pay attention to was the screaming mess inside his head.

He needed to get away.

He needed to run.

He needed to escape.

He needed to…

With that half of a thought he was already moving first the best as he could, then with the speed of sheer desperation. The keys Kabuto had dropped guided him to freedom.

He disappeared into the shadows.

* * *

TBC, un.

* * *

1) To those wondering... Yup, the shadow was Itachi. (grins)

* * *

A/N: Okay… (winces) You guys are going to kill me now, aren't you?

Once again, it's waaaaay too late, so I've gotta start tuning out. PLEASE, please, do leave review before going, too – you know how happy hearing from you would make me! (gives puppy's eyes)

IN THE NEXT ONE: Naruto gets a huge surprise, and Sasuke's possibly even more unstable than ever. It's now Orochimaru decides that it's time for him to move.

ONLY THREE MORE TO GO, FOLKS! (sniffs) Man, it's gonna suck to let this one go.

Until next time – I really hope I'll see all of ya around then!

Peace out!

* * *

**Naruto**: Let's hope Naruto manages to put things together and remember before it's too late, ne? (crosses fingers)

Gigantic thank yous for the review!

'Hope I'll see ya next time.

-

**kai**: It's such a good thing Juugo saw that – now if only he tells Tsunade, too!

And Itachi's alive. Yosh! (grins)

Naruto's indeed been put through a little bit too much, ne? I bet Sasuke pushing him away was the last straw. It sucks, but I guess he can't really be blamed for giving up, ne? (winces)

Mega-sized thank yous for the review!

Until laters, no?

-

**ZakuKura**: Awww, I'm super happy to hear you enjoyed it so much! (beam)

Thank yous so much for reading and reviewing, especially seeing as how busy you were!

Until next time, I hope.


	9. The Beginning of the End

A/N: And it's update time! (smirks) And not a moment too soon, I'd say.

But first, of course… MY GOSH, all those reviews…! (gasps, then beams and HUGGLES) You can't even imagine how happy you guys have made me – THANK YOU! (hugs again) As per usual, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because I bet you already want to get going… Let's roll! I truly hope ya'll have a good ride with this one.

* * *

CHAPTER 9: The Beginning of the End

* * *

After the attack of memories, it took Naruto almost a full day for the shock and crushing headache to clear enough to allow him to think.

He'd just ran away from Sasuke – it didn't really hit him until now. He'd abandoned the Uchiha.

And Kabuto… was still working in Tengoku – working for himself or Orochimaru, was impossible to tell.

At that moment he was sure of what he had to do for the first time in what felt like ages.

Iruka gave him a somewhat confused look when he stormed past the living room, where the man was reading a book – resting quite comfortably in the arms of a sleeping Kakashi. "Where are you going?"

For a moment he thought about revealing everything, but then decided against it. His foster father sure as hell had enough things to worry about as it was. "I've… just gotta take care of something. I'll be back in a bit." And he was out before a single question could be voiced.

-

Watching the closed door, Iruka emitted something between a groan and a sigh.

Naruto was growing up so fast – too damn fast.

His thoughts were coaxed elsewhere when Kakashi moved ever so slightly, waking up. He loved seeing the hint of softness that lingered in the silver-haired's eyes when the man looked at him. "How are you feeling?"

He gave a lopsided smile. "Better now."

Kakashi seemed to understand. "Hmh." The man kissed a particularly sensitive spot behind his ear, making him shiver with pleasure. "Do you feel like eating anything?"

He shook his head, the mere thought of food making his stomach flip upside down. He rested his forehead against Kakashi's shoulder, without thinking nestling himself even more comfortably into the man's arms. "Can we… stay here, like this, a bit?"

He felt Kakashi shrug while the man wrapped a pair of stunningly tender arms around him. "This is a nice couch."

While drifting into a slumber, he allowed his thoughts to wander.

They'd lost several years after being separated by adoption, having lost all clues on each other's whereabouts. He was determined to make the best out of the time and future they now had – however long or short that might be.

* * *

Naruto felt extremely clearly that something was badly wrong long before he could even see Tengoku. His suspicions were proven correct when he saw two police car's parked outside the building.

His eyes widened while he started to run.

The police let him in with suspicion when hearing he was a former member of staff, but wouldn't tell him anything. Inside the building it was much quieter than usual – apparently the inhabitants had been ordered to stay in their rooms for some reason. He shivered.

The silence made everything all the more ominous.

It took a long moment – much longer than he'd expected – before he reached the building's biggest common space to find all staff-members and four police-officers gathered there. He frowned when noticing Tsunade, who was sitting at a table with a grim expression, her head bandaged. "What the hell's going on?" he uttered before managing to control himself.

Suddenly all eyes were on him, and it became uncomfortably silent. Tsunade was the one to speak first. "Naruto… Have you seen Sasuke since last night?"

He frowned, not quite understanding and feeling alarmed. "No. How could I have?"

Tsunade sighed heavily. "Orochimaru and Kabuto… attacked last night. Sasuke ran away." She gulped thickly, searching his eyes. "Naruto… He killed Kabuto in self-defence."

His eyes widened while chills ran through him.

_Shit…!_

This time he gulped, not managing to rid the foreign taste lingering on his tongue. "I've gotta find him."

Tsunade's eyes darkened. "Be careful, understood? He's very unstable right now – there's no telling in what kind of a state of mind he'll be."

He shook his head. "I don't care." Because he honestly didn't. All that mattered was finding Sasuke before it was too late.

And before anyone could make a move or speak, he was on his way.

He'd made the mistake of abandoning Sasuke twice already. It was about time to try and fix things.

* * *

Naruto didn't know how long he'd been walking when he finally stopped, realizing with chills that he'd ended up to a cemetary.

_What am I doing here?!_

Whatever the reason might've been, he found himself walking through the gates and starting a determined walk forth. Once he ended up to what a part of him had most likely been looking for, he was first almost startled, then felt his heart break.

There, slumped to the most likely cold ground, Sasuke was leaning heavily against a tombstone, apparently fast asleep. The raven's hand was pressed against the names engraved.

_Mikoto & Fugaku Uchiha_

_Itachi Uchiha_

For a moment, he wondered if he should tell Sasuke about Itachi. In the end he decided that it was too early. Sasuke obviously had more than enough on his mind at the moment.

Cautiously, not sure if he was making a huge mistake, he started to approach, eventually laid his hand against the Uchiha's shoulder. Jolting to awareness, Sasuke turned a glare towards him.

He smiled although it hurt seeing the Uchiha like that. "Hey, it's okay – it's just me." He frowned while observing the raven. Sasuke didn't appear sick or injured, but… "Are you okay?"

Sasuke looked at him for the longest time – as though trying to determine if he could be trusted – then nodded slowly and looked away. "Just… tired." The raven's eyes narrowed. "And my back hurts like a bitch."

He nodded, relaxing a little. Sasuke was talking, now. It was a good start.

They remained in silence for a long time, both confused and wondering what the next move should be.

Naruto's first thought was that he should take Sasuke back to Tengoku, but he changed his mind.

That was where the problems had started in the first place – Sasuke wouldn't feel safe there.

And so he moved, outstretching a hand for the the dark-haired teen who responded with a look of mistrust and surprise. "C'mon." His voice was soft, hopefully comforting. "I'm taking you to my place, 'k?" Iruka was going to get a heart attack, but at the moment there was no choice.

Very slowly, tentatively, Sasuke took his hand and squeezed with a force that can only be called that of despair. The raven's thin body was hauled up much too easily.

Not needing to say a word, they started the silent walk towards his place.

And the only thing that fit into his mind was just how good and right Sasuke's warm, most likely exhausted body felt while it practically leaned against him.

* * *

Back in Tengoku, there was a frown on Neji's face while he leaned against a wall, watching as Ibiki kept interrogating Tsunade.

This… could've been his perfect chance to finally make things right, to put things to an end. Unfortunately it looked like he still didn't have the courage.

"You know…" Gaara's voice caught him so off-guard that he shivered. The redhead was looking at him with thoughtful eyes that seemed to see absolutely everything. "I never thought you to be the cowardly kind."

His eyes narrowed. "I'm not a coward."

Gaara shrugged. "Right now, you are." So saying, the redhead leaned forward with such speed that stunned him, pressing a pair of surprisingly warm and soft lips against his. He feared his heart would burst as it started to race.

Then the kiss was over as suddenly as it'd started. Gaara's eyes were odd when the boy looked at him. "If I just dared to do that… then you really should have the balls to take fifteen fucking steps." With that the redhead turned around and walked away.

It took a long time before anything started to register to him. But then this warmth he'd never felt before filled him, going from head to toes. And a feeling that was unfamiliar to him followed, sneaking into every pit of his being.

He swallowed thickly, all saliva drying from his mouth. And suddenly he didn't understand a thing.

What must've been almost five minutes later, he finally managed to move. Ibiki gave him a questioning look when he stopped two steps away from the man.

He took a deep breath. "I… have to tell you something." The voice wasn't his. "There's… something about _that_ night Hinata doesn't remember quite right."

* * *

When waking up upon hearing the house's door open about an hour later and walking up to see Naruto, Iruka blinked twice when seeing that the blond wasn't alone.

Stood beside the boy was a unhealthily thin and badly scarred raven-haired, onyx-eyed teen who was currently looking at him with clearly apparent mistrust, almost hostility. Based on what he'd heard from Naruto and Tsunade, it took him only seconds to realize who this teenager was.

Since he'd been a child, Naruto had brought in stray animals from cats and dogs to birds and frogs. But now… A teen who'd escaped from a mental institution?

He groaned a little, rubbing his face with one hand. "Naruto…"

Naruto shook his head, his eyes flashing in a way he'd never seen before. "I'm not letting you send him back there, Iruka." The blond gulped. "Just… Trust me, please? Trust me when I say that he's safer here."

He sighed heavily and closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again. "Take him to the shower and give him something to eat. I'll think in the meantime."

To Naruto, apparently, those words gave all the hope the boy needed. The teen looked at Sasuke. "Let's go and get you cleaned up, okay? Trust me – it'll make you feel better after spending a night out there."

Sasuke certainly didn't seem fully trusting, but didn't react violently, either. In fact, the teen let Naruto lead him so easily that it stunned Iruka.

He didn't wake up from his stupor before hearing Kakashi's voice. "Uh-huh", was all the man said.

Giving a deep sigh, he grabbed his cell-phone and dialed numbers. Tsunade replied in less than ten seconds. "_Did Naruto find him?_"

"Yeah. He's safe." He gathered himself for a moment, not sure why he needed such. "I… think it'd be good to let him stay here for a while. He seemed pretty out of it."

"_I agree. Besides, he's safe from Orochimaru there._" The woman sighed, or perhaps groaned. "_I'll have to send a cop there, to ask some questions and keep watch in case Orochimaru gets a hint that they're there. Chances are that he'll get that piece of information sooner or later – after all, he even got to Sasuke in Tengoku._"

He felt very cold. "I know."

There was some hassle in Tsunade's end. It took a while before she spoke to him. "_I have to go – it looks like Ibiki wants to ask something. Thanks, for taking care of Sasuke._"

He relaxed slightly. "No problem. I'll see you later."

Once the phone-call ended, Kakashi gave him a questioning, almost worried look. "Is everything okay?"

He smiled, wrapping a pair of arms around the man. "Yeah." He then leaned his forehead against Kakashi's chest, inhaling the man's scent. "Now… Weren't we doing something much more pleasant than this a while back?"

* * *

The process of going to the shower was awkward, filled with discomfort and something else entirely.

Sasuke gave Naruto a somewhat heated look while getting undressed. "Stop staring, will you?" the Uchiha all but barked.

He grinned sheepishly, turning around. "Sorry."

But he didn't manage to look away long. He peered over his shoulder.

There were numerous scars on the Uchiha's body – the most obvious one on his face, one running across his stomach, several on his arms and legs, and also a very nasty one on his chest. The boy was also painfully skinny – he could've easily counted the teen's ribs. But still… He couldn't help being entranced.

Because despite all its flaws, that body was beautiful to him.

He stared too long, because he got caught. Sasuke's expression changed about twenty times in less than ten seconds when the raven saw him staring. He expected an outburst, or at least a snarl, but nothing such came.

Somehow, it felt like they'd done this a million times over.

Steam floated in the air, making a thick layer to his tingling skin, while they kept looking at each other, neither knowing how to proceed from there. It was hot – almost intoxicatingly so – and neither seemed to know what the next move should've been.

In the end Sasuke spoke in a hoarse tone. "Give me a towel, will you?"

He nodded mutely, doing as ordered. His moves were soft and circling while he helped Sasuke get dryed. The Uchiha gave him weird looks every now and then, but didn't push him away. It gave him a very pleasant, warm feeling.

And then it was done. Sasuke was stood before him all dried, looking like a whole another person in his clothes and his hair falling down instead of being spiked up.

He swallowed laboriously, his mouth growing dry. "Let's get you something to eat."

* * *

That evening, Sakura opened the door to find Sai. The boy was drenched wet from the rain pouring outside, and there was an expression that unnerved her on his face.

If she hadn't known him better, she might've thought he was crying.

She frowned. "Hey, what's…?"

Before she could make another move or speak, Sai had wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a tight embrace.

* * *

Itachi was one who'd always had sharp instincts. That's why he'd felt that something was wrong from the moment Kin had more or less dragged him to work in the orphanage not much after he'd been told Sasuke was dead.

That day, his suspicions were finally proven correct. Because while he was making his way from the kitchen towards a common space, he heard something he most definitely shouldn't have.

Kin's voice was far more tense than usual when she talked to a phone. "… trust me, okay? I've go the situation under control. I don't think he's having any suspicions anymore."

He frowned, his fists balling while he caught on. He grit his teeth.

"Yeah, yeah, I will. I've taken care of my job pretty well so far, so stop questioning me, will you? You just take care of that brother of his before he becomes any more of a threat than he already is."

Itachi felt all breath and warmth leave him, and was fairly sure his heart stopped for a while.

So… Sasuke really was alive, somewhere out there. And those people, they'd…! They were actually going to…!

His blood boiled until he felt like he'd been burned up alive, and he emitted a tiny hissing sound from the back of his throat.

They'd already taken Sasuke from him once. There was no way in hell he'd let the same thing happen all over again! They would _never_ hurt his brother again!

And then he heard steps. Kin spoke before he managed to react. "How… much did you hear?"

He felt his unseeing eyes narrow. "Enough", he hissed.

He heard something metallic being prepared. "In that case we've got a problem."

He couldn't think, couldn't speak, could only feel such overwhelming rage that took over absolutely all of him.

It was time to end this nightmare.

And then he reacted.

He swung with the kettle he'd been carrying the exact second there was a deafening bang he distinctly identified as a gunshot.

* * *

At around the same time Iruka – who'd spent the past couple of hours or so napping – entered the kitchen to find a rather bizarre sight that was enough to make him smile a little.

Sasuke sat at the table in Naruto's clothes that looked baggy on him while the blond babbled constantly and prepared something that looked like a tuna- and tomato sandwich. Ingredients flew almost as fast as words and a lot of mess was made while Naruto worked.

Sasuke watched this all in silence, appearing almost confused. Iruka couldn't help wondering when was the last time the Uchiha had seen something like this, something so… mundane.

Naruto, on the other hand, appeared oblivious to the other boy's whirring emotions. The blond grinned brightly while putting the sandwich to a plate and showing it to the raven. "This is your favorite, right? It may not be the most nutritious stuff, but if this is what you want to eat…" The boy shrugged, only then noticing him. Blue eyes filled with hope. "Hey! Do you want something to eat, too?"

At first he thought about declining, but then… Well, who knew. For the first time in a long while the idea of eating didn't make his stomach turn. "Maybe I do. I think I'll also make myself a sandwich."

Naruto's grin, if possible, became even wider. "That's good." The boy then took Sasuke's hand, so fast that he surprised all three of them. "Now let's go. I'm about to make sure you eat this, and then get some sleep – just like Kakashi ordered."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, but didn't pull himself free from Naruto's hold or fight back.

Iruka couldn't help smiling as he watched the teens go, Naruto once again babbling and Sasuke feigning an irritated expression.

It felt good to see so much life and hope.

-

Once they made it to his room, Naruto sat to the edge of his bed and glanced towards Sasuke, offering the bread. "What are you waiting for? Dig in." Just then the raven's stomach rumbled so loudly that even he heard it. He smirked. "C'mon, stop being so damn stubborn. I know you're hungry."

Very slowly, step by step, Sasuke approached and sat down right next to him, accepting the offered food. "Thanks." It was almost inaudible, but Naruto's ears caught it anyway.

He smiled. And for once it was he who decided that nothing needed to be said.

Sasuke ate slowly, whether it was because he was savoring the taste or fought to get something solid down. When the Uchiha was finally done, he appeared so exhausted that it looked like he'd just finished a marathon.

It wasn't until then Naruto realized just how long the past couple of days must've been for the Uchiha, and he hadn't made it any easier when abandoning the boy to Tengoku. His chest tightened with guilt.

"Are you okay?" he all but whispered, not really thinking about the words before they were already out.

He expected Sasuke to deny everything, to perhaps even lash out at him. To his shock the raven shook his head, not meeting his gaze.

Without hesitating or thinking, he wrapped his arms around the Uchiha, pulling the boy as close as he dared to. Stunningly enough the raven didn't resist, didn't even react; perhaps the boy was finally willing to admit to himself that he needed something like this.

"Everything's gonna work out, you know?" he all but whispered, resting his chin on top of the other boy's shoulder. His thoughts whirring, he added. "And… None of what's happened is your fault, okay? None of it. So…" He took a deep breath. "It's okay. I'm sorry I left you, but… I'll never leave you again. And I want you to promise me the same."

He frowned when there was no response, only then realizing how Sasuke's breathing pattern had changed. He couldn't help giving a tiny chuckle when realizing that the Uchiha was fast asleep against him.

Not daring or wanting to let go, he laid them both down gently, careful not to wake up Sasuke when the boy was finally calm and content. It took only moments before he fell asleep to the Uchiha's familiar scent.

* * *

At around the same time downstairs the doorbell chimed.

Iruka frowned, feeling alarmed. Who could it be this late? Kakashi's shift wouldn't end for another couple of hours.

Taking a deep breath, he walked up to the door and peered through the dooreye. He saw a woman with shortcut, purplish hair and sharp dark eyes. He frowned again. "Who are you?"

A badge was shown to him. "I'm detective Anko Miratashi, Ibiki Morino's partner. I came to ask Sasuke a couple of questions."

He didn't trust fully yet, but relaxed ever so slightly, moving to open the door. "Hmh. I wouldn't expect him to answer."

"Neither do I, but I'd like to try." The woman's voice was a touch softer. "Now could you please let me in? It's raining cats and dogs here."

He nodded, mostly to himself, and moved further.

-

Outside the door, Anko's eyes narrowed. "Is this your idea of a protective guardian?" She snorted bitterly. "I can't believe there was a time when I loved you."

"I did keep you alive for years, didn't I?" Orochimaru commented in a smooth voice, then shrugged. "Consider this your final act of appreciation. Besides, I'm no monster. I am going to let your daughter live because you took me here."

She inhaled sharply, her eyes stinging. "I fucking hate you."

She reached out for her weapon, but wasn't fast enough against the one pressed to her head.

She could've sworn she heard the small sound Orochimaru's gun made through the silencer and rain before everything exploded to white.

-

Iruka opened the door the exact second Anko slumped to the doorsteps, dead. His eyes widened when he met those of Orochimaru's.

Orochimaru smiled coldly at him. "Well hello, Iruka. It sure has been a long time – you've grown up." The man's expression then changed. "Now let me in, will you? It's time to do some reminiscencing."

* * *

TBC, un.

* * *

A/N: Oh man… (winces) You guys are gonna kill me now, aren't you?

I've REALLY gotta get going now, but before that… PLEASE, do leave a review – even if it's to curse my seemingly never-ending cliffies! (gives puppy-dog eyes)

IN THE NEXT ONE: Orochimaru strikes, and several lives hang in a balance. Tears and blood spill as the story nears its end in 'The Final Blow'.

ONLY TWO MORE TO GO, FOLKS! (starts bawling)

Until next time – 'hope ya'll join in then!

Be good!

* * *

**ZakuKura**: Awww! (HUGS) Thank you so much for those kind words. They really mean a lot, ya know?

Super-sized thank yous for the incredible review!

I REALLY hope ya'll enjoy the rest as much.

-

**kai**: Let's hope that Sasuke stops pushing Naruto away and finds his way to safety, and that Naruto will be able to help him ne? And of course, that Itachi and Sasuke will finally be reunited. (sniffs)

Gah, I bet Tsunade didn't know to expect Kabuto just then. (winces) Let's hope that ass**** will get what he deserves, ne?

Gigantic thank yous for the review!

Until next time, no?

-

**Naruto**: Well of course! (hugs)

And hooray – i'm absolutely thrilled to hear you had a pleasant stay with the chapter. (grins from ear to ear)

Monumental thank yous for the review!

I REALLY hope the rest turns out worth the wait.


	10. The Final Blow

A/N: Yup, I'm back – and miraculously enough right on time, although I've had quite a bit of hassle going on! (grins) BUT, first of course… GOSH, you just keep amazing me – thank you from the bottom of my heart for those absolutely incredible reviews! You guys are the GREATEST! (HUGGLES) Thank you! (beams) **As per usual, responses to anonymous reviews** can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because I think you deserve to get on FAST especially after the latest review… Let's rock on! I truly hope ya'll have a good ride.

* * *

CHAPTER 10: The Final Blow

* * *

In the darkness, Sasuke's eyes flew open. The little breath he'd had faded when he felt the pair of warm arms wrapped around him, and realized that he wasn't alone.

It took several long moments before memories finally slid to place.

That's right, he was in Naruto's house. The person sleeping next to him was Naruto, not someone who's mere touch made him feel sick to his stomach.

He frowned.

Then why did he have this clear and extremely dark, unreasonable feeling that there was a threat approaching? Why had he woken up to such a feeling?

Then he heard the steps – distant, yet approaching steadily. And before he could do much more than pull in a hasty breath of air, the room's door was opened.

None other than Orochimaru stood there in the darkness, looking at him with an expression he couldn't and didn't even want to see. "Well hello again, Sasuke-kun. You sure have been a lot of trouble lately." The voice was dark, ominous. "Did you really think you'd be able to run away from me?"

He sensed movement beside him as Naruto started to wake up. Before he could make a single motion to keep the boy from making a huge mistake the blond spoke. "'suke, what…?" The blond then noticed Orochimaru, and something between a hiss and a growl escaped as the teen recognized. "You fucking asshole…!"

Metal shone when Orochimaru pulled out his gun. "I'd mind my manners if I were you, Naruto. Or would you rather join Iruka?"

* * *

Ibiki rubbed his face with one hand while sitting in one of Tengoku's quiet rooms, the headache that'd been bothering him all day escalating still.

It took a long moment before he managed to take a deep breath and pull out a tape-recorder. "I know that this isn't easy, but I need you to tell your story one more time, okay?" He knew it was inhuman, but there was really no other choice.

Neji was pale on the opposite side of the table, and he was fairly sure that the teen was shivering. The brunet wouldn't look at him when starting to speak. "My mother was always mentally very sick, and it got much worse after my father died – she never got over it. That's why we moved to my uncle Hiashi's house." The teen's eyes darkened. "It was a huge mistake. For my mother seeing someone who looked exactly like my father but wasn't him was too much. She got even sicker until she couldn't tell what was real anymore. She started drinking, and her moods swung worse than ever before. Other times she would lash out badly at me and my cousins – Hinata and Hanabi – and other times she would spoil us with expensive gifts and little trips to absolutely everywhere. We were too young to understand any of it, just brats. We were scared of her, and it was exhausting to try and keep her in a good mood. And Hiashi was too busy with work to see any of it." The boy closed his eyes for a moment. "One day, Hanabi had been sick all day, and it was getting on my mother's nerves. She didn't know what to do with a sick child, and so… She gave her medication. A lot of medication. Hanabi fell asleep, and we couldn't wake her up anymore. And then… Then Hiashi came home…" Without a warning Neji slumped forward, burying his face into his hands. "God, there was so much blood – it was anywhere… And Hinata was screaming so loudly – they all were… And then, then she was still. I tried to wake her up, but she wouldn't move…"

For a long time the teen couldn't speak. In the end Ibiki broke the silence. "Neji? Are you sure you want to continue?"

As though not even hearing him, Neji went on in a feeble, barely audible tone. "Hinata… She loves her father, because she didn't have to face the man he turned into after that night. That night… It was far too much for her. That's why she created a story inside her head that it was this homeless guy we met earlier that day – Tazuna – who killed my mother. She believed in that story like some kids believe there are monsters under their bed, and that story – a lie – became her whole world, Tazuna was everywhere. She started having night-terrors again, she was terrified or people and withdrew into herself. And Hiashi was more than happy with that, because it meant there were no evidence against him. He did a good job with creating evidence that supported Hinata's story." The boy seemed to swallow down something. "I… I watched how she got locked up, and… I couldn't do anything. I couldn't…" The boy's voice faded under a turmoil Ibiki couldn't even imagine.

Ibiki swallowed thickly, not managing to rid the horrible taste in his mouth, then rattled the necessary information to the recorder and pressed 'stop'. It took a while before he managed to look towards Neji. "Thank you."

The boy pulled in a hungry breath, still not looking at him. "Can I go now?"

He nodded stiffly. "Of course."

Neji bolted out before he could move a muscle.

-

Once he got into the hallway Neji couldn't feel or think, he barely even managed to stand. In the end his shuddering legs gave way and he slumped to the nearest chair, his eyes wide and utterly empty.

Gaara's voice caught him by surprise, but didn't startle him. "Neji?" The redhead looked at him with a frown. "Are you okay?"

At first he couldn't do a thing, but eventually he managed to make himself shake his head slightly while looking away.

To Gaara, it seemed, that was the only needed sign. Without saying a word the redhead sat to the chair next to his, so close that he could feel the boy's warmth. And suddenly he found it easier to breathe than before.

Neither noticed that their hands were linked and held on tightly.

* * *

Naruto could barely breathe from the mixture of fear and rage that took over absolutely all of him, sending his head whirring. His eyes narrowed while he jumped out of the bed like a furious panther, and his fists balled as he stood only steps away from Orochimaru. "What the hell did you do to Iruka? Where is he?"

Orochimaru shrugged, stepping further into the room. "If I were you, I wouldn't worry about him right now." His heart lost its focused beat when the man lifted his weapon, quite clearly preparing to use it. "I should've taken care of this situation a long time ago, but perhaps it's not quite too late yet."

Rage and terror had numbed Naruto's instincts. That's why he didn't manage to realize what was happening until it was much too late.

He felt a dark flare inside him when Orochimaru was suddenly stood before him. The man's eyes were even more chilling than before. "Don't take this to the heart. I'll get back to you soon – but first, I have some unfinished business with Sasuke."

He opened his mouth, but the scream was hopelessly too late.

There was a sharp jolt of pain when something hard hit his head. After that he faded into a dark hue.

-

Sasuke was fairly sure his eyes widened a fraction as he watched Naruto fall down limply, and for a while all breath abandoned him. When he finally found his voice, he all but bellowed. "Naruto!" No response came from the blond. His eyes flamed with fury that can't be described with words when they found Orochimaru. "Leave him the fuck alone!"

Orochimaru seemed between amused and irritated. "I merely knocked him out – for now." The man pointed towards the unconscious teen with his gun, snake's eyes hazardous. "But if you try to disobey, I won't hesitate using bullets the next time around."

* * *

As soon as he made it to the station, Ibiki could tell that something was badly wrong. Everyone gave him cautious looks and stayed as far away as possible, as though they'd been expecting an explosion of some sort.

He frowned. "What the hell is going on?"

The others exchanged looks, as though trying to determine which one of them was the unfortunate one who'd have to break the news to him. In the end Mizuki – one of those amongst the staff who knew him best – stepped forth bravely with an expression he couldn't read. "Let's… go somewhere a bit more private."

He nodded tensely, not sure if he even wanted to hear what was to come.

They went to his office. As soon as the door was closed Mizuki spoke. "Look, Ibiki… We haven't managed to contact Anko for the past few hours." The man searched his eyes, like to determine whether it was wise to go on. "She… never came back from her visit to Iruka and Naruto's house."

He felt utterly cold all over, and was forced to fold his arms to his chest. It took his all to keep the emotions at bay – now wasn't the time for them. "What about Orochimaru? Is there a single clue on his current whereabouts?"

Mizuki shook his head, most likely finding it the wisest not to speak out for a moment. The man hesitated for the longest time before voicing what was to come next. "There's… something else you should also know." The man's eyes were unreadable when he spoke. "It's more than likely that one of our own warned Orochimaru and told him where Sasuke is. There's a leak in our system."

A flare shot through him, and he actually felt every single one of his facial muscles stiffen. It took a mighty while before he could speak. "Gather a group – we're going over to that house right now. As for that… leak…" His eyes flashed. "I'll take care of it."

Mizuki nodded. The man seemed to be close to saying something for a moment, but then changed his mind and left instead.

Ibiki's eyes were hard as he looked at the closed door of his office.

Maybe it was time to trust his instincts.

He picked up the phone.

* * *

The first thing Naruto sensed when waking up was a crushing, all-consuming headache. He groaned and rubbed his face with both hands, fighting to gather his spinning thoughts. "Sasuke…?"

There was no response. And the silence was what it took for everything to find place.

His eyes flew open and he gasped, his throat feeling unnaturally tight. It took much longer than it should've to get up, and when he managed to do that he felt so dizzy that he had to look for the support from a nearby wall.

The room… was utterly dark, and empty. His whole body turned unnaturally cold while horrifying thoughts coursed through him.

What the hell had Orochimaru done to Sasuke, and Iruka? Where were they? How long had he been out?

More determined than ever despite his dizziness, he started to fight his way forward. And all he could do was hope from the bottom of his heart that he wasn't too late.

But then again… Would Orochimaru have left without finishing him off? It was ridiculous how much hope such a bleak thought gave him.

As he made it downstairs, his head started to clear little by little. He could think once more – and that's when he heard the sounds of someone breaking a window and enter. Steps started to approach slowly, sounding unnaturally loud in his ears.

He prepared to defend himself – until he was face to face with the intruder, and emitted a sharp gasp. "Itachi?!"

The slightly older raven lowered the gun he'd been holding against him slowly, appearing just as surprised as he felt. "Naruto?" The older Uchiha remained silent for a moment, as though trying to see. "Are you okay?"

He nodded, then realized that the other couldn't see it. "Yeah, yeah, I am." He then noticed the still bleeding gunshot-wound on Itachi's side, and shivered. "Shit… You're hurt!"

The Uchiha made a grunting sound. "It's just a scratch." The raven then frowned, appearing alarmed all of a sudden. "Naruto… Where's Sasuke? Is he here?"

He swallowed laboriously, his eyes starting to sting all of a sudden. This whole nightmare was becoming more than he could handle. "Orochimaru's got Sasuke. We have to find him."

Itachi nodded grimly. They continued their way in silence, he guiding the blind raven the best as he could in his current mental condition.

It took what felt like ages although it couldn't have been more than a couple of minutes, but in the end they froze at what was waiting for them nearby the door that led to the house's basement.

Sasuke sat there, hugging his legs that'd been brought tightly to his chest and completely glazed eyes looking at nothing at all. The teen was shaking, so badly that sitting upright seemed to be a difficult task.

Naruto's eyes widened while wrath traveled through him once more.

_What the hell did he do to you?!_

Without thinking he rushed forth, kneeling to Sasuke's side and laying a hand to the boy's shoulder. It hurt him how the boy flinched to his touch and pulled away, as though not quite sure that it was really him. "Sasuke?" There was barely any reaction. He swallowed with difficulty, his eyes stinging a lot worse than before. "Sasuke, we need to get out of here, okay? So… Can you walk?"

Hearing his brother's name, Itachi gasped faintly. "Sasuke?" The blind raven took a nearly cautious step closer, obviously not quite daring to believe. "Sasuke, is it really…?" The voice faded away.

Itachi's voice seemed to trigger something inside Sasuke. The tiniest hint of life returned to those onyx orbs when the boy looked up slowly, something that simple visibly taking all the younger Uchiha's courage.

And then the brothers were staring at each other, although one couldn't see and the other was most likely in no condition to really understand.

Naruto would've given almost anything if the reunion that'd been waiting to happen for such a long time would've continued, but yet again fate wasn't on their side. For just then steps approached, and in a matter of moments Orochimaru was standing only steps away. Snake's eyes filled with irritation. "So this crowd keeps growing?"

It took Itachi only seconds to locate the direction of Orochimaru's voice and point the gun he'd been carrying towards the man. The raven's jaw tightened before he all but hissed. "It's time to end this sick game of yours – for good."

Orochimaru laughed. "And how are you planning on doing that when you can't even see?" Naruto gulped and moved instinctively towards Sasuke when the man pulled out his own weapon. "Make one wrong move… and one of these pests ends up dead – and you won't even be able to see which one it will be."

Naruto's world stilled for a moment when Orochimaru's gun started to shift between him and Sasuke, as though having difficulties with picking the right target.

He, Itachi and Sasuke moved at the exact same time.

* * *

Outside the building, Ibiki's group felt chills when spotting the bloodied figure lay on the doorsteps. As soon as he recognized who it was, Ibiki moved. "Anko…!"

Even in the darkness, it took only seconds to finish the inspection. The wound on the woman's head revealed that she'd died in a matter of seconds. There was no life in her eyes anymore, nor was there any warmth or a pulse in her.

At that moment Ibiki felt so much at one go that none of it really registered.

"Shit…", someone whispered behind him.

He couldn't speak, couldn't even react. All he could see was Anko's body – and red. His fists shook as he balled them.

Orochimaru would pay dearly for this – he was about to make damn sure of that.

Just then three sharp gunshots could be heard from the house, followed by someone's shout they couldn't make out.

His eyes flashed while he got up, reluctantly abandoning Anko's body for now. "Sounds like it's time to go in", he stated gruffly.

* * *

After hearing what Sai had showed up to tell, Sakura found falling asleep impossible, even with TenTen's usually miraculous mixture of herbal tea.

Making sure Sai – who'd been exhausted even when arriving – was still in some sort of a sleep beside her, she opened her room's tiny television. In a couple of moments she found herself wishing she'd never done that.

For she found herself watching local news – and realized that the female-reporter with long, brown hair was stood before Naruto's house with a solemn expression. She added volume although she wasn't entirely sure if she wanted to hear, and waited with breath hitching in her throat.

The reporer's voice was as dark as her expression. "_Two hours ago a tragedy struck this calm area when the neighborhood was awakened to gunshots and the police appearing. So far the details are unclear, but it's been confirmed that there's at least one casualty, and odds are that there'll be several more…_"

Sakura saw that the woman kept talking, but she couldn't even hear the words.

Naruto was there, and after a phone conversation she'd had with the blond earlier she knew Sasuke was, too. What if…?!

Acting faster than her thoughts whirred, she pushed Sai rather roughly with badly shaking hands, her heartbeat picking up.

The boy looked at her with some sleepy confusion. "Sakura, what…?"

She cut him off rather sharply, not managing to think. "We've gotta get to the hospital – now. And I think you should call Kiba on the way."

* * *

TBC, for an epilogue.

* * *

A/N: Ooooh, man… (winces) AGAIN! (slams head against a keyboard)

BUT, at least the good news is, that this SHOULD be the last cliffie in this story. (grins cautiously) So… phew?

Awkay, I'm getting out of here before you'll start throwing things. But PLEASE, do leave a review to let me know your thoughts – and feel free to use it as a therapy after all these cliffies! (chuckles nervously, then screams as things start flying)

IN THE NEXT, and (sniffs) last, ONE: Not all lives go on as the story draws to its end, but those who survive try their hardest to build together a better life. Will they succeed? That shall be revealed in 'Epilogue – The Departure'.

**ONLY ONE MORE TO GO!** (weeps) Man, I'm gonna miss this A LOT! (keeps sniffling)

Until next time, folks – 'hope ya'll all join in for the final!

Be good!

* * *

**kai:** Kabuto's dead, at very least – there seems to be some justice in the world of this fic! Now if only we'd get rid of Orochimaru, too…

Let's hope that Itachi will make it out okay, and that Sasuke wakes up before it's too late! (gulps) Those brothers are some serious need of a happy ending, ne?

Monumental thank yous for the review!

C ya soon, I hope.

-

**ZakuKura**: I feel bad for those two, too. Are they ever going to get a break?! (sniffs)

Gigantic thank yous for the review – I'm beyond happy to hear that you've enjoyed the story thus far! (beams)

'Hope I'll c ya around.

ps: Awww, extra review, too! (grins) Thank you! Now that's the kind of a sandwich I'd like to have right now. (licks lips)

-

**Naruto**: Poor Naruto and Sasuke, ne? (sniffs) Let's hope they'll get out of this mess before it's too late. (gulps)

Massive thank yous for the review!

'Hope I'll c ya around next time.


	11. Epilogue – The Departure

A/N: Oh man – I seriously can't believe that this is the last one already! (starts weeping like a kid) I wouldn't want to let this one go, but I guess no story can go on forever, ne? (sniffs)

BUT, before letting you know how this ends… My GOSH, thank you from the bottom of my heart for those absolutely fantastic reviews you've sent – just take a look at that unbelievable amount! (beams, and glomps) You guys are absolutely amazing – THANK YOU! (hugs again) As always, responses to anonymous reviews can be found from underneath the chappy.

Awkay, because those cliffies I left you on the last time were HORRIBLE, let's get on with the story before you guys start throwing those sharp and heavy things. (sweardrops) I really, REALLY hope that this ending meets all your expectations!

* * *

CHAPTER 11: Epilogue – The Departure

* * *

The hospital's emergency department was in a complete chaos when Kiba barged in, his bloodshot eyes wide with terror. Everywhere around him members of staff all but ran around, working as fast as they could and barking brisk commands and information to each other. Nothing that was being said really registered to him.

All of a sudden a female-nurse was standing before him, examining him with her gaze. "Are you injured?"

He blinked twice – not really understanding – then shook his head. "No. No, I just…" He turned his gaze to see how the staff struggled to save a badly bloodied patient who's face he couldn't see. A wave of nausea washed through him, making his stomach flip upside down. "My… friend Naruto was brought here. I…" He trailed off, not knowing what to say.

The nurse seemed to bite back something before talking. "I know you're worried, but you'll only be in the way if you stay here. Go and wait outside." Seeing his just about exploding storm of objections, she went on. "We'll let you know as soon as the situation clears out, but right now you're in the way."

His eyes flashed and he opened his mouth to argue, but just then the nurse took off. Turning his gaze, he realized that she was running towards the patient he'd noticed earlier. Seconds seemed to move unnaturally slowly while one of the people hovering above the patient – a doctor – shook his head with a grim expression and the unfortunate soul was pronounced dead.

At that moment Kiba felt like throwing up.

Even with the best of wills he couldn't tell if someone escorted him out of the department or if he found his way out by himself. But nonetheless the next thing he realized was that he stood before Sai, Sakura and Neji. For the first time since Neji and Naruto's breakup those three were sitting close to each other, almost huddled together. Sakura's hand seemed to shake a little as it squeezed Sai's tightly. It took several moments before they noticed him and greeted him with absentminded nods.

They looked like a bunch of scared five-year-olds, and in some other situation it might've amused him.

He opened his mouth, but for the first time in his life he was speechless. And so he slumped to the chair that'd miraculously found its way behind him, letting his head fall in defeat.

The silence in the room was suffocating while they sat helplessly, waiting.

* * *

The sounds he heard seemed to come from some other world, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't really make himself focus. That's why he managed to catch only glimpses of the talking around him.

"… just had another casualty."

His blood turned into ice although he couldn't understand why. What was wrong?

There was something that sounded like a hiss. "Shit…"

Someone touched him. "Hey, kid, can you hear me?" Was that cursing he just heard…? "He's too pale, and his vitals are crashing. He's bleeding internally. We need to get him to the OR, now."

Those words made no sense to him, and suddenly he realized that he was terrified out of his mind. A wave of pain attacked the area nearby his stomach and he moaned loudly, not managing to speak or open his eyes although he tried desperately.

"Kid?"

Were they… talking to him? It was all getting so blurry…

"Kid, you need a surgery, but you'll be just fine, okay? So don't you dare give up on us just yet."

Lots of orders he couldn't make any sense to were shouted, and he realized quite faintly that he was moving. And then it became dark.

* * *

And then his eyes flew open, so easily that it scared him a little. He sucked in a frightened breath, and felt his heartbeat jump frantic upon realizing that there was something in his throat. Something started to bleep so sharply his ears hurt.

_What the…?!_

Just then Tsunade was hovering above him. The woman tried to smile a little, but her worn expression gave away chillingly clearly that something horrible had just happened. "It's okay, Naruto. It's okay – that thing in your throat is an intubation tube, nothing more. It'll be taken away as soon as you remember how to breathe properly." After giving him a few seconds the blonde went on. "You were just in a surgery – you were bleeding pretty badly on the inside. But the doctors treating you sound pretty optimistic. You just need a lot of rest." Even with the best of wills, he couldn't tell if the woman was lying or not.

His heart didn't calm down the slightest, and he would've given almost anything if he could've spoken. His hands moved helplessly.

_Sasuke, Iruka… Where are they? What the hell happened?! What about Itachi?_

Tsunade looked at his most likely exasperated face for a moment, then said something he couldn't make out to someone who was supposedly standing nearby. In a matter of moments a rather young-looking male nurse was stood beside his bed with a needle in his hand. "I'm going to give you something that will help you calm down, okay? This isn't going to hurt, so don't worry."  
He tried his hardest to show his objections.

He didn't want to be drugged, he didn't want to fall asleep – not when…!

But it was already too late, for the needle had pierced his skin. And soon enough he was lingering in the confusing world of restless dreams.

* * *

Extremely early in the next morning – after spending one of the longest nights in his entire life in the hospital – Neji finally sauntered towards his home, his legs weighing a ton each. His steps came to an abrupt halt when he realized that there was a police-vehicle parked right outside the rather shabby building. His eyes widened a fraction as he started to realize.

Could it be…?

And then two police-officers he'd never seen before escorted a handcuffed Hiashi Hyuuga through the house's doors, the man's eyes flashing with uncontrollable rage. He couldn't do anything but stand there paralyzed, barely managing to believe the surreal sight.

Was it… really over?

Just before he was pushed into the car, Hiashi's eyes found his. Just one glimpse of those cold, hatred-filled eyes was enough to make him shiver a little. And then, the very next second, the man was gone like a bad dream of some sort.

Cool wind blew as he lifted his gaze towards the horizon, feeling more confused than ever in his life. For the shortest of moments, he could've sworn he saw Hanabi standing there in the light of a rising sun, smiling at him.

-

Neji tried to sleep but in the end realized that he couldn't. And before he knew it he was stood by the doorway of Hinata's room in Tengoku. She was painting, he discovered – and what she was creating made his stomach turn a little.

It was photograph-sharp picture of their family, back when it'd still been whole – back when their smiles had been genuine. A million memories he'd fought so very hard to suffocate came flooding back, forming a lump to his throat. Memories from those days when he'd had all that love around him.

And suddenly he missed his parents more than ever before.  
It took a while before Hinata noticed his presence, and when she did her eyes widened as she anticipated the worst of reactions.

Perhaps it was guilt that struck him motionless for a moment, but in the end he nodded slowly, then walked up to her.

Without saying a word, they started to finish the painting together.

-

About half an hour later Gaara happened to pass by the room, and noticed the cousins still lost into the world of their painting. The two were standing close, no signs of discomfort between them.

At that moment Gaara did something he hadn't done since his early childhood.

He smiled.

* * *

The next time Naruto opened his eyes, it _hurt_ – hurt so much that he released a cry that made someone close to him move.

"Hey." That voice… It was Tsunade's, wasn't it? "Are you finally waking up?"

Very slowly he opened his eyes to meet Tsunade's blurry figure. He frowned, not liking the situation at hand at all. "What…?" His voice was scratchy and weak, but at least he could somewhat talk – so they'd finally taken that tube from his throat.

When his vision cleared a little, Tsunade's expression was solemn. "You… were shot – you've been kept mostly drugged for the past four days. You gave us quite a scare, brat."

That didn't make him even halfway satisfied. He frowned, struggling desperately to get more words out. "Sasuke… Iruka… Itachi… What…?" He wasn't sure if he even wanted to know, but for the sake of his sanity…

The memories – if they even were such – were much too hazy.

* * *

/ _Naruto had moved about two steps before Orochimaru made his decision._

_All he and Sasuke could do was watch as the man swung his gun at the blind raven, hitting his head and affectively knocking him out._

_His eyes widened a little. "Itachi?" The older Uchiha remained unmoving._

_A loud, dangerous growl crawled through Sasuke's throat as the raven glared at Orochimaru. "You fucking asshole…"_

_Orochimaru lifted his gun once more as though not hearing. "Now… It's time to finish the job."_

_Naruto didn't think, didn't reason. All he could do was move._ /

* * *

Tsunade seemed to sigh a little. "Itachi's fine. All he got was a little bump to the head."

He nodded slowly, the memory starting to clear. "Good… That's good…" He then looked back towards her, his chest cold. "Sasuke…?"

* * *

/ _Naruto didn't hear the gunshot, or even see the bullet, while he moved towards Orochimaru. He didn't see anything but the man, really, until there was Sasuke, stood directly before him. The raven's onyx eyes carried the strangest expression for a millisecond until the boy suddenly slumped forward into his arms. And it wasn't until then noticed the blood running from the wound on the boy's neck like a river._

_His eyes widened, and his whole being filled with such terror that can't couldn't possibly be human. "SASUKE!"_

_But the raven was completely still in his arms._

_Not knowing what else to do, he kept holding on to Sasuke as though trying to protect the boy from the whole world and lifted his gaze although he could barely see. At that very moment Orochimaru lifted his gun towards him._

_He remembered shouting and feeling sharp, searing pain. And then he fell._ /

* * *

Tsunade's expression didn't promise anything good. "Sasuke's going to be fine, eventually – to at least some extend. He's out of the ICU now, but it was a touch and go for a while. He lost a significant amount of blood and his heart stopped twice – he's still on a heart-monitor. It doesn't make treating him any easier that he's extremely resistant." Her eyes darkened and she sighed heavily. "Sasuke's throat… was badly damaged by a bullet – it scratched so badly that the bleeding almost killed him. He's also had some difficulties with breathing, but those have been taken care of. With a couple of surgeries he'll most likely be able to eat normally, but…" She seemed to bite back a bitter sigh. "They don't think he'll ever be able to speak again."

Those words struck him harder than a pile of bricks, sending him breathless and making his eyes sting.

He looked towards Tsunade after a long moment – and felt his stomach ball painfully when realizing that she wasn't through just yet. "What else?" he all but whispered. When her mouth opened he cut her short. "I know you're still hiding something. What is it?"

Tsunade swallowed thickly and looked at him for a long moment, obviously trying to decide if he was ready to hear what she had to say. In the end she looked away while talking in a uncharacteristically quiet tone. "Look, Naruto… Orochimaru attacked Sasuke very, very viciously." She took a deep breath, still not quite managing to look at him. "He needs you very, very much right now."

The nausea that attacked Naruto as those words sunk in made him gag dryly.

Sasuke would never talk again, would never be the same again – all because of…

His eyes narrowed with such hatred he'd never before, and he balled his fists as tightly as he could. "Orochimaru… What…?"

He couldn't read Tsunade's expression. "He's dead. Itachi shot him. But…" She looked away once more, her eyes darkening. "It happened a little too late."

* * *

/ _Naruto lost track of time as he lay on the floor, holding Sasuke's limp, continuously bleeding form in his arms while he fought to stay awake, struggled to cling to the reality._

_And then, all of a sudden, the house's front-door opened, and he heard Kakashi's voice. "Hey – you don't mind me using my own keys, do you? I forgot my shirt. Why are you up this late, anyway?" _

_Naruto felt hot tears rolling down his cheeks while he tried to scream, fought to give any sort of a warning. Then it was already much too late – Kakashi was stood only steps away. The man's face paled and his eyes widened a fraction as the sight sunk in. "What the…?!"_

_Naruto wasn't sure if he imagined hearing some sort of commotion outside the house, nor did he care. All he could see was Kakashi, and the gun turning towards the silveret. His gaze blurred a little and a wheezing sound erupted through his throat._

_  
At that moment Orochimaru stopped hesitating. Kakashi managed to take one step before two sharp gunshots echoed through the house. And then – with Naruto being able to do nothing but watch – two much too vivid wounds appeared to Kakashi's body; one to his stomach, and the other to his head. And he hoped from the bottom of his heart that he could've screamed as the man fell down and lay unnaturally still._

_His gaze blurred even further, so he wasn't entirely sure what happened next. But he was sure he saw Itachi start to move again, noticed that the older Uchiha's hand was sneaking towards the gun he'd been holding._

_Orochimaru snorted, his eyes on Kakashi. "Pathetic."_

_A second later there was a third gunshot. And Naruto's world started to swim the second he saw Orochimaru sway with a surprised expression._ /

* * *

Naruto felt his eyes blur and sting. "Kakashi…"

Tsunade nodded grimly, appearing sadder than he remembered ever seeing her.

He took a deep breath, his wounds hurting like hell all of a sudden, and looked away. "And… Iruka? How is he?"

Tsunade took much too long before responding. "Orochimaru shot him, and pushed him down the basement's stairs, causing him several broken bones. He… lost a lot of blood and got very banged up, and it doesn't make things any easier that he also has cancer. He's still in the ICU."

It felt like cold water had been pumped through his veins. The pain escalated once more, making him want to wince. "He'll be okay… Right?"

Tsunade took her time before speaking. "The doctors… are trying their best, okay?"

He felt sick to his stomach and gagged once more, which did no good to the pain. His eyes felt moist and his voice sounded off as he spoke. "I wan to see him."

"I'm afraid he's not allowed visitors just yet." Just then Tsunade's pager snapped to life. She looked at it and cussed half aloud, then moved her gaze to him. "I have to go. Just… Try not to worry too much, okay?" She tried to smile. "Everything's going to work out."

He nodded, and looked away. He barely noticed how she left.

Naruto didn't know how long he remained utterly still, his thoughts spinning around in a mad flood, until his body started to move on its own. Already knowing that it was probably a very stupid thing to do he fought his way out of the bed and, ignoring dizziness and pain, started to make his way towards an unknown destination.

He didn't know how many hallways and turns he took until he found himself stood behind a certain door. Feeling very determined all of a sudden, he pushed the door open and made himself enter.

The room was eerily quiet when he sneaked in to find a sight that was just about enough to break apart his heart.

Sasuke lay on his bed, obviously wide awake and curled up so that it looked like the boy had been trying to shield himself against the rest of the world. If he looked carefully, he could see how badly the teen was shaking even through the rather thick blanket.

He swallowed thickly, not having the slightest clue of what to do for a long moment, then moved, first slowly, then determinedly.

It hurt him badly how Sasuke flinched when he touched the boy, and along came something close to rage.

He didn't even want to know what Orochimaru had done to Sasuke. Because if he had known…

He took a deep breath, although it didn't make him feel the slightest bit better. "Hey, it's… it's just me, okay? Calm down."

It took several moments, but in the end Sasuke did seem to calm down at least a little. Apart from shivering the raven became still under his touch, although refused to meet his gaze.

Encouraged by this change, he wrapped his arms rather cautiously around Sasuke and pulled the raven close. Tears stung in his eyes, but he paid no mind to them. "It's okay", he whispered again, his voice shaking a little. "Everything's gonna work out, I promise."

They remained that way for the longest time – he holding Sasuke the best as he could and the raven not quite daring to trust enough to lean against him – until the Uchiha's eyes started to droop.

He smiled a little, not entirely sure why he did so. "Are you tired?"

It took a while before Sasuke nodded, barely enough for it to be seen.

Very gently, almost cautiously, he guided them both to lay down. He really wished Sasuke would've dared to be closer to him, but he knew better than to hope for miracles – it was most likely a huge step for the boy to let him even this close. "Then go to sleep." Feeling a sudden, unexpected urge to kiss the other boy he leaned his head against the raven's back. The Uchiha's spine stiffened instantly. "He's… He's never gonna hurt you again, okay? So go to sleep."

Sasuke fought sleep miraculously long, but in the end the boy's body relaxed, and the somewhat erratic breathing calmed down.

He was almost falling asleep himself when the room's door opened. Turning his gaze with some startle, he found a very young female nurse.

She arched a half-amused eyebrow. "You do know that he's not allowed visitors, right? And I think you should be resting as well."

He grinned sheepishly. "'Sorry."

The nurse just smiled, then moved and started to change the bag of fluids that was being dropped to Sasuke's veins through a IV. "There are some friends waiting for you, by the way. I think they'll go out of control soon if they don't see you."

Leaving Sasuke was the last thing he wanted to do, but he didn't really have a choice. In the spur of the moment he kissed the sleeping raven's cheek lightly, then turned to leave. He didn't dare to look back in fear of what it'd do to him.

When he made it to his room, he found himself grinning despite all the worry weighing his shoulders when he found some familiar faces.

Kiba grinned radiantly when seeing him. "Well how about this – he _is_ still alive!"

Sakura's eyes narrowed, but tremendous relief still showed through. "Not for long. Do you have any idea how badly you scared us?!"

He scratched his hair, feeling like a five-year-old all of a sudden. "Ugm… Sorry."

"Neji… figured that it'd be the best if he didn't come and see you just yet", Sai said after a moment. "He sent his greetings, though."

Naruto nodded. And finally he felt fully comfortable with hearing his ex-boyfriend's name. "Tell him thanks, will you?" He then frowned, having a very dark feeling in the pit of his stomach all of a sudden when noticing that something – or rather someone – was missing. "Guys… Where's Shikamaru?" His eyes narrowed when he saw the others' expressions. "He's my friend, too! I've got the damn right to know."

The three looked at each other for a while, clearly not wanting to tell him something and appearing so sad and anxious that it scared him. In the end Sai looked at him with eyes he'd never seen before. "I… think you should sit down."

* * *

Some hours later, Sasuke stirred from his more or less drugged half-sleep when sensing someone in the room. Turning his gaze, he felt his heart skip a couple of beats when realizing that it was none other than Itachi sitting in the chair next to his bed.

For the longest time he could only stare. And the only coherent thought he got was that Itachi had grown up a lot from when they'd last met.

The silence wasn't cut until Itachi spoke in that tone he remembered so well it hurt. "Sasuke? Are you awake?"

Their gazes met – Itachi's not seeing – and at that moment he wished he could've spoken so badly that it hurt. There was a ton of things he would've desperately wanted to say.

It, however, appeared that Itachi was equally speechless. For after sitting absolutely still for several long moments his older brother got up, and before he realized what was happening he'd been pulled into a warm, tight embrace. He could've sworn he heard a whisper. "I'm so sorry."

All he could do was lean his forehead against his brother's chest as his body kept shivering. And for some reason it felt like that was enough.

* * *

_Four Months Later_

* * *

When approaching Sasuke's room in Tengoku, Tsunade wasn't surprised to find Itachi stood by its doorway. She couldn't help smiling a little although he wasn't able to see it. "So… Today's the big day."

Itachi nodded, his expression soft. "I know he's far from fine, but… I think he'll get there eventually."

During the past months Sasuke had come a long way, most definitely thanks to his brother and Naruto. The boy still had nightmares and he barely let even Naruto touch him, but he hadn't had any episodes for over two months. And he was starting to eat normally, little by little, and although his clothes still looked too big on him he didn't seem sickly thin anymore.

Sasuke's scars – mental and physical – would never heal and he would need a lot therapy and some medication for a long time, maybe for the rest of his life. But…

She looked inside the room, where Naruto was babbling constantly, helping Sasuke get ready for moving out of Tengoku to the blond and Iruka's new house. Despite faked irritation the younger Uchiha appeared… happy, almost. And she noticed with great joy that the raven didn't flinch away when Naruto's hand brushed him seemingly carelessly.

Tsunade couldn't help agreeing with Itachi at the moment.

She smiled when Naruto leaned down and whispered something she couldn't make out to Sasuke, and the raven's eyes softened secretly.

Giving the two some privacy, she turned towards Itachi. "So… How are things progressing with the orphanage?"

The blind raven smiled faintly. "Extremely well. I'll be able to take it over in a couple of weeks or so."

She quirked an eyebrow. "This soon?"

Itachi grinned a little. "The officials were quite willing to be flexible when I threatened to report how poorly they kept an eye on what Orochimaru was doing."

She smiled again, then looked back at Sasuke and Naruto. The two seemed to be lost into a world of their own.

She'd never believed in miracles, and this wasn't enough to change her mind. But at least now, there was hope. That was enough.

Comfortable silence lingered between them as she and Itachi kept watching over the boys in the room.

* * *

Later that evening, Naruto was already dozing off in his own bed when he heard movement from the room next to his. Feeling curious, he crawled out of the comfortably warm bed and tiptoed to the other room's door, knocking. "Sasuke? What's up?"

After waiting for a moment he pushed the door open to find Sasuke sitting on a windowsill, staring at the sky.

Even just weeks earlier, that sight might've scared him out of his mind. But at the moment he trusted Sasuke's mental condition enough to approach calmly, careful not to startle the boy. "Hey. Why aren't you in bed?"

It took a long moment before the raven seemed to become aware of him, and wrote him a note.

'_I'm not used to it being this quiet._'

He nodded, understanding. It wasn't until then he realized just how long the Uchiha had spent in a mental institution. He smiled faintly, although the thought saddened him, and stood as close to Sasuke as he dared to without breaking any invisible lines. He lifted his gaze towards the sky, where stars were shining stunningly brightly. "Iruka used to try to teach me constellations, but I was hopeless."

To his surprise, Sasuke handed him another note.

'_My mother taught me all of them before she died. I still remember some._'

He all but stared at Sasuke for a long moment, and didn't wake from his stupor until the raven quirked an eyebrow at him. "No, no, you didn't write anything funny. It's just… That was the first time you've ever talked about your parents." He smiled. "It feels good, that you trust me enough to do that." He wished he would've been allowed to touch, but instead he settled with placing his hand right next to the Uchiha's. He searched the boy's face as the raven seemingly focused on the sky once more. "Look… I know it'll take time, but… I'm glad you trust me, a little. And it's damn good to have you here."

Most might've missed the sudden and brief change, but his eyes caught in in an instant and savored it.

For this blink-like fleeting moment, Sasuke came close to smiling.

-

About a couple of hours later Naruto went downstairs to get a glass of water, only to notice that Iruka was in the living room, working on something.

He blinked twice, approaching. "Hey. What are you doing?"

Iruka shivered a little, obviously not having seen him approaching, then looked at him with eyes that revealed the man had cried not long ago. "You've got school tomorrow. Shouldn't you be in bed?"

He shrugged. "And you've got that early doctor's appointment. You should be in bed, too."

Iruka wouldn't look at him anymore, instead focused on what he'd been doing. It hurt him to see all the tightly held back pain in the man's warm brown eyes. "I'm… trying to go through Kakashi's stuff – I should've done it weeks ago, but…" The brunet's voice broke, and the man cleared his throat while picking an envelope and showing it to him. "He actually left me a letter. He never writes."  
Not sure if he should speak at all, he kept his tone quiet. "What did he say?"

Iruka shook his head, the pain momentarily giving room for something fond before returning tenfold. "I'm… I can't read it yet, but… I will, soon."

He nodded, definitely nod needing any further explanations. After hesitating a moment he took a step closer to the tiny mountain of stuff – photographs of Kakashi and Iruka in some orphanage, some clothes, books and tiny gifts. "Do you need help?" When the man looked at him he shrugged. "I can't sleep, anyway."  
Iruka gave him a smile of apparent gratitude and nodded.

Nothing further was needed as they started to work in silence.

* * *

_Eight Years Later_

* * *

It was a surprisingly sunny yet chilly day of October while Naruto made his way towards home, his thoughts spinning around wildly.

Years had passed quickly. The road hadn't been easy, but now he was finally perfectly happy. He'd studied to become a psychologist, and now he was about to graduate and get the job of his dreams with mentally disturbed children – a job that was quite a lot like the one he'd had in Tengoku. Some days, like today, the pressure of finishing his studies was hard, but he wouldn't have traded it for anything in the world. And things at home…

He opened the door of his house and looked around. "Hey, Sasuke, are you home?"

Knowing to follow his instincts, he made his way through the house and entered one of its biggest rooms, which had been turned into Sasuke's gallery. Just as he'd expected, the Uchiha was there, working on some painting so intently that the raven most likely hadn't noticed him entering. For a moment he stood by the doorway, watching.

It'd taken three years before Sasuke had allowed him to kiss, and sex was still a very touchy subject with them. But the Uchiha was trying to cope, furiously, and although there was still a mountain of mental issues to deal with he couldn't have been happier.

He then looked towards Sasuke's painting, and smiled a bit.

Apparently this was one of those paintings that would not be introduced to the public. For slowly imprinting to the canvas was a picture of him, naked and staring out the window with his back turned towards whoever was looking at the painting. In the beginning Sasuke's paintings of him had made him utterly embarrassed and he still blushed every time. But now he was much more surprised, even stunned, by the way the Uchiha saw him. Those fine, delicate lines, the shape of him, the way the light caressed him… He could barely recognize himself, and sometimes it was hard to believe the image he was looking at was really Sasuke's conception of him. It felt unbelievable that someone thought he was that beautiful.

If he ever doubted the way Sasuke felt about him, all he had to do was look at one of these paintings and he _knew_.

Grinning somewhat slyly, he walked closer and wrapped his arms around Sasuke's slim waistline, then kissed the raven's neck. The man shivered with some startle and pleasure. "Hey. You've been working all day long again, haven't you?" It was a statement, not a question; when Sasuke started to paint something, the Uchiha could keep working on it until the point of collapsing out of exhaustion. Naruto found this dedication unnerving, but couldn't really do anything about it.

Sasuke turned, giving him a 'Stop fussing' -look.

He snorted. "Well someone's gotta try and take care of you when you're doing such poor job yourself." He then grinned, kissing the man's nose. "What do you say… if we go and have a little afternoon nap? I had a shitty day, and you obviously haven't been sleeping enough."

Instead of responding, Sasuke gave him a kiss that made him feel warm all over. When it was over, he noticed something on the raven's face.

"You've… got some paint." He kissed the blue spot on Sasuke's cheek gently, making the raven shiver a little. "Right there."

He waited for a moment how Sasuke would react to the situation at hand. Yet again the raven managed to surprise him.

Before he realized what was happening, a pair of warm lips was pressed against his and familiar arms wrapped around him. Having no intention to deny the request, he let his own arms move and pull the raven close, then deepened the kiss until they both felt breathless.

When they broke apart, he leaned his forehead against Sasuke's, enjoying how the other's soft skin felt against his. "So…" He licked his lips, still tasting the Uchiha. "How about that nap? I mean… You haven't slept for almost a full day, and I know I'm exhausted." He probably should've made sure the raven ate first, but at the moment they were both too tired for that.

To his surprise Sasuke shook his head with an expression that couldn't be read. Before he could do more than frown and open his mouth a note was given to him.

'_There somewhere we need to go._'

He quirked an eyebrow, trying to read his boyfriend's eyes. "Where?"

Sasuke gave him a look that clearly said 'Just shut up and obey, will you?'.

Huffing with mocked hurt feelings, he folded his arms. "Fine. But this better be something good."

* * *

The walk took longer than it should've in Naruto's opinion. When they stopped, he blinked twice when realizing that they were stood before his favorite ramen-restaurant.

"This… has got to be one sign of the world ending", he managed in the end, looking slowly towards Sasuke. "You're actually taking me here, willingly?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, then pulled him inside rather roughly. And the second they entered chaos started.

"Happy birthday, Naruto!"

It was around them he became aware of all the familiar faces, and a huge grin spread across his face.

Sai stood not too far away, his arms wrapped around Sakura's heavily pregnant waistline. Ino, Hinata and Tsunade were stood almost directly next to them, smiling at him. Iruka stood nearby them, also smiling, and he still couldn't help wondering how different the man looked with short hair. Behind the rest of the crowd stood Gaara and Juugo, leaning against the wall in almost identical poses.

Grinning stunningly brightly, Kiba marched forth and wrapped a pair of arms around him. "So… Did we manage to surprise you?"

He chuckled, scratching his head with embarrasment. "I can't believe I forgot my own birthday!"

Sakura snorted, rolling her eyes. "We can."

His eyes turning soft and slightly moist, he smiled at all those dear people gathered around him. Suddenly he felt very warm inside. "You guys… Thanks." He would've said more, but started to feel choked.

Kiba rubbed his hands together, cutting the silence. "Mah, let's cut the mushy stuff and jump on the cake!"

Everyone agreed.

* * *

Much later Gaara, who'd been approaching his car, stopped when hearing Juugo's familiar voice. "Are you going to see Neji?"

He turned with a nod to meet the other man's somewhat exasperated face. "Yeah. Why?"

Juugo seemed to swallow thickly. "Can I… go with you?"

He nodded, not needing any further explanations. They hopped into his car in silence.

* * *

Almost as soon as she and Sai got into their car, Sakura spoke. "Sai… I think you need to take me to the hospital."

He frowned, somewhat confused. "What do you mean?" And then he lowered his gaze, seeing the wet substance all over the car's floor.

Sakura's water… had broken. It was finally time.

Needing no further coaxing, he exhilarated the car.

* * *

Not much later Ino stood before the door of a much too familiar house she hadn't seen in years, fighting with her all to do something as simple as knock.

All those years ago she'd left Konoha because she'd thought Shikamaru would never accept his responsibilities, and she couldn't stand the thought of raising her child in front of a father who didn't give a damn. Hearing what'd really happened to Shikamaru had hurt, so much that before this she'd only come back for the boy's funeral, never telling anyone but her family and closest friends about the new life growing inside her. But now… Now, it was time to do what she probably should've years ago.

"Mom?" There was a frown on Shio's face when she looked at her son, met his dark eyes that were painfully familiar. "Why are we here?"

She swallowed thickly, vaguely wondering why talking was such a hard task all of a sudden. She was ready for this, wasn't she? Trying to smile, she ruffled his brown hair. "There's…" She cleared her throat. "There's someone I want you to meet."

Shio appeared confused, but before he got the chance to ask the house's door was opened. And as she turned slowly, she was face to face with Shikamaru's mother.

It took the longest time before she managed to speak at all. "Hey."

The woman frowned at first, quite clearly not remembering her, then gasped. "Ino – my goodness…!" And then the older woman had already wrapped a pair of much too tight arms around her. "Gosh, I haven't met any of Shikamaru's friends since…!" She cleared her throat, obviously not bearing to say 'the funeral'. "Where have you been? What brings you here now?"

She took a deep breath, steeling herself. "There's… someone I want you to meet." She laid her hand to Shio's shoulder. "This… is my son, Shio. Shio Nara."

At first the older woman could only stare. Then, so suddenly that it surprised all of them, she threw her arms around Shio and pulled the boy close. Some tears trickled down her smiling face.

* * *

All the emotions he was holding back made Gaara's experssion grim as he stood before a headstone, looking at the name engraved to it.

'_Neji Hyuuga_'

It'd taken almost two years before they'd started to be more or less officially together. They'd gotten two more years, and then… It was all wiped away.

A drunk-driver was all it took to steal away the one thing he'd ever truly…

His eyes stung and narrowed as he balled his fists, fighting to find the courage to speak and failing miserably.

All he could do was hope that Neji knew anyway.

Painfully swallowing down something that almost turned out to be too big, he knelt down to clear off some already dead flowers from the grave. Neji deserved to have something living around him, deserved…

Emitting a strange, choked sound, he closed his eyes. The words came before he could process them. "I miss you."

For a moment he actually waited for a response, although all his reason told that there couldn't possibly be such. In the end he couldn't bear the silence anymore so he got up much too fast and headed where he knew Juugo to be.

He found Juugo turning away from a tombstone that had a name '_Kimimaro_' engraved to it. Their eyes met.

No words were needed. They both knew how they felt already.

Silently, their heads hung in defeat, they started to make their way through the cemetary towards the screeching gates.

Neither could bear the thought of looking back just yet.

* * *

The evening was already dark when a lone figure made his way through the graveyard, eventually stopping to a grave someone obviously worked hard to keep clean.

Iruka's eyes darkened for a moment when he read Kakashi's name from the stone, then softened once more. His fingers were gentle as they caressed the letters, still remembering how the actual skin had felt. "Hey. I… know I said I wouldn't be able to visit today, but… I thought I should come and tell you." He swallowed thickly and lifted his gaze towards the sky. It'd rain soon. "The doctor called", he stated bluntly, so calmly that it surprised him. "The cancer's back, and it's spread pretty far this time. He said he needs to do some tests to know further, but… I already know." His eyes softened once more while they moved back to the stone. Naruto was all grown up and happy – now, it was finally time… "I'll see you soon, 'Kashi. So… I hope you've been waiting for me."

His legs pathetically weak, he got up the best as he could and turned somewhat reluctantly, forced to abandon Kakashi once more. Just before starting to walk away completely, he spoke once more. "You know… I still haven't read that letter of yours. And… I don't think I'm going to, because I want to hear you say all those things when we meet." He opened his mouth, but then decided that he'd need much more time than he had to speak out all he wanted.

As he started to walk away once more, he was almost sure he felt a hand brush his cheek. And for the first time in years his smile didn't carry sadness.

* * *

Sasuke was almost drifting into sleep when the bed dipped, and Naruto's familiar, warm body lay down next to him. Feeling somewhat groggy, he cracked his eyes open to meet the other's familiar blue ones.

The blond kissed his nose. "Oh no, shhh, go back to sleep. I'm sorry – I didn't mean to wake you up."  
With a huge struggle managing to make a strange, gruff sound, he let go of all his pride and buried his face into the crook of Naruto's neck.

To hell with pride. This felt too damn good.

Naruto chuckled, pulling him close. "Affectionate today, are we?"

Suddenly he wished from the bottom of his heart that he could've spoken, that he would've been able to say…

But then again, maybe he didn't have to. Words had always been Naruto's department, anyway.

And so, feeling calm once more, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to drift into a sleep. He had no nightmares that night.

* * *

_Five Days Later_

* * *

Naruto let out a deep breath when packing a box to his car. "That was the last one", he muttered to himself.

The moving-truck they'd packed up with their friends had left ten minutes earlier. Now it was time for them to go as well, just like their friends had left Konoha one by one over the past eight years.

This leap was something they needed to do.

When going back inside, he found Sasuke and Itachi from the empty living-room. Once again he found himself grinning at the silent interaction between the brothers.

Not having noticed him, Itachi whispered something he couldn't quite make out to Sasuke's ear, and the younger brother responded with drawing letters to the back of the older one's hand. Whatever it was Sasuke said, Itachi responded with a nod and a smile.

Suddenly he felt a tiny twinge of guilt. It wasn't easy for him to leave Iruka behind, and he could imagine that leaving Itachi wasn't any easier for Sasuke, especially with all the years that'd been stolen from the brothers.

But then again, Itachi had his orphanage, and the brothers would meet quite often because Sasuke would keep visiting Tsunade for therapy. Besides, it wasn't like they would've been moving to the other side of the world or anything.

With that thought soothing him, he cleared his throat and took some steps forth. "So… Are you ready to go?"

Sasuke nodded. And there was no hesitation in those onyx pools.

-

About an hour later they were driving towards their new hometown, with Naruto sitting behind the wheel. Realizing that Sasuke had been still for a long time, he glanced towards the Uchiha to realize that the raven had fallen asleep. The man's head was leaning comfortably on the window and one hand while the other hand had fallen to rest only inches from his, like wanting to hold on. And it wasn't until then he realized what'd looked so different about Sasuke since that morning.

They'd made a deal not to make any commitments before they were both fully ready, but he hadn't been able to make himself wait any longer, especially when he'd seen a breathtakingly beautiful yet simple white-gold ring on a tiny jewelry store's window. And so he'd bought the ring and hidden it with care, awaiting with dread for the possible response it'd arouse. But now…

The ring was on Sasuke's finger, shining brightly in the sunlight as the sign of a new path they'd soon take – as a sign of a promise that'd never be broken.

Naruto smiled, focusing on the road.

If this was the closest to heaven he was going to get… Then he was more than happy with it.

* * *

_**Owari.**_

* * *

A/N: So… (gulps) What's your judgement – was that a worthy ending, or a total pancake? Please, do let me know – it'd mean a lot even if the story's already over!

(sniffs) I'm so sad to think that this is over now! This has been an amazing ride, and I've enjoyed writing each and every chapter. I'm seriously going to miss this!

You guys, thank you from the bottom of my heart for making this such a great ride – I honestly don't know how to thank you enough for all those listings and absolutely unbelievable reviews you've sent for this one! (huggles, beams, and showers you with all kinds of special gifts) You guys are incredible – thank you for joining the ride!

Awkay, I've really gotta start tuning out now.

Until next time, I hope – with whichever story that may be! THANK YOU!

Take care!

* * *

**cogasha**: (chuckles) Quite a rollercoaster, ne? (gulps) Let's hope that it'll get a happy ending!

Tons of thank yous for the review!

'Hope ya'll stay tuned for the epilogue.

-

**Naruto**: Those poor people sure have gone through quite a spin, ne? (winces) We'll see how it'll all end in the epilogue.

Huge thank yous for the review!

Until next time, I hope.

-

**ZakuKura**: Awww! (hugs) Finishing this story will suck, because I'll miss this. (pouts) But it makes things a bit better to hear that I'm not the only one who'll miss this – and you've loved the story, too…! (beams)

Let's hope the ending won't be depressing – it'd be too unfair! (gulps)

Super-sized thank yous for the review!

I really hope ya'll enjoy the epilogue as well.

-

**Shades of Grey**: Things really don't seem too great right now, ne? (winces) But let's hope that those poor people get their happy ending, anyway, because anything else would be total injustice! (sniffs)

Colossal thank yous for the review – I'm thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the chapter!

'Hope I'll c ua around the epilogue.


End file.
